I recently purchased a fly kit at a very reasonable price for a Forecast 4 piece 2 wt. I had seen several nice write ups on these 6'6 blanks so wanted to try one, The reel seat that came with it is a nice, smaller wooden uplocking seat. I was thinking of putting on a lighter cork and slide ring seat. Has anyone got some experience or thoughts about cork reel seats and these lighter rods? Thanks Steve

I just built a rod on the same blank and thought about a cork and slide ring seat but after weighing components I opted for a Fuji skeleton with a modified wood insert and 6" wood grip that I turned. The weight saved by using the cork and slide ring seat was negligible and not worth sacrificing the positive reel holding ability of the Fuji in my opinion. My lightest reel is a G Loomis venture and with it in place I have a rod that balances very well. I wanted to keep the rod light but I still was willing to sacrifice a few grams for improved performance. It has turned out to be a nice handling rod by the way. Now if Spring will come early to allow an opportunity to fish it!

Stan Grace
Helena, MT
"Our best is none too good"

A cap and ring seat will also work on a rod like that.

Scott Kinney
The Longest Cast Fly Rods
[www.thelongestcast.com]

I have turned my own wood reel seat inserts and wooden handles and it still balances nicely. I have used a cap and ring configuration and also a dual slip ring configuration. If you want to go light, you can use a cork handle / cork reel seat insert (dual ring / uplocking/cap and ring). I have used a ryall jr with a 2wt line, a gloomis adventure 3 with a 3 wt line and an okuma sierra with a 4wt line on these rods. All of them work fine. I would also recommend a Ross Colorado 0 which is fairly light. Of course, if you want to go super light, get a Forbes reel with the cork handle/reel seat configuration. Can't go to wrong with this versatile blank.

One of my favorites for this size rod is the REC CRA cap & ring. I buy the skeleton and turn either a cork or wood insert. I've had no problems with it holding the reel with either insert.

Cortland store has an inexpensive NS or aluminum cap and ring. More secure than double rings. I would try to keep things lite on this blank, including the reel. Of course you can trade off heavier hardware for a lighter reel. The little Forbes Avon weighs 1.6 ounces.