The Hardy Zephrus is by far my favorite rod to throw dries with. It is one of the lightest fly rods on the market and paired with the Ross Evolution LTX makes it one of the lightest fly combos you can buy. Both rod and reel won awards for being the lightest on the market a few years ago.
Length: 9’
Weight: 4
Pieces: 4
Action: Fast
Use: Dry Fly
Retail: $795
Aside from being lightweight, this rod lays out dries beautifully. This is important when trying to present small dry flies during a hatch. It also helps that I bought a 4 weight too, but this rod is just so smooth and accurate. Not only does it present flies an fish well it is a lot of fun to cast. I would feel confident casting flies in a coffee cup with this rod.
The Hardy Zephrus also has a lot of power too, making this an ultimate dry fly rod. It handles 70–90-foot casts with ease with pinpoint accuracy and handling.
Part of the reason that it handles so well is because of the resin that Hardy uses developed by 3M. This resin at a microscopic level is round and not flat like other resins are, so this in turn creates a smoother cast and faster recovery. They call it Sintrix and the Zephrus has the highest concentration of it in their lineup when it came out at 440.
When we have any mayfly hatch this is the first rod I think about using. I usually have it rigged up ready for whatever hatch is coming in the afternoon and use it especially for that. It excels at presenting dry flies.
I would highly recommend the 4-weight rod to anyone looking for a dry fly rod. With precise accuracy and power, it is on the top of my list for favorite rods. I have also gotten feedback from fellow guides asking if I am sure this is a 4 weight because of the line speed it generates. The higher weights in the series would also be good for nymphing or streamer fishing. It is just a great all-around rod.
The Hardy Zephrus is really the best of both worlds, being fast and powerful with accuracy but still yields a great presentation for dry flies. If you are able to get your hands on one of these rods I would highly recommend it.
Check out our Dry Fly fishing page here.