They are up on the Redington site now too, ready for order.

Wow what a fantastic exchange on the "butter".

I'm new to fiberglass and am considering the butter as a starting point. I'm completely graphite. Started out with fast action ST. Croix, went to several Helios ZG and even a H2 and have realized I am in love with the action on the custom rod Kerry Burkheimer built for me. Which leads me here. I understand he rolls the blanks for Tom Morgan's glass rods, nice to know, but not dropping any coin on one of those unless I really really really fall in love with glass.

That said, are there any other first rods a first time glass caster should consider? I'm thinking $300 is the most I'll spend on it.

Thanks,
Cardo

SHHHHH!

I may as well toss in my. 02 too. A friend of mine works at Cabela's and he bought an 8' 5wt butterstick at a screaming employee discount added to some other discount. He brought it over the other day and we did some lawn casting with it using a WF5F Rio Gold. The color of the rod is pretty far "out there" -- kind of a micro-metalflake light orange with bright halloween orange wraps. The reel seat hardware was matt platinum colored anodized and seemed nice quality. The overall build quality was very good, on this particular rod at any rate. My first thought when casting it was Lami honey but then decided it really wasn't quite that slow. To me it's more of a medium full-flexing action. Slower than I prefer personally, but I know that some here really like that kind of action. It took some effort and practice on my part to slow my stroke down and adjust my timing to avoid tailing loops. I don't know if it's just me but rods with this type of action seem to be less forgiving and have a narrower window of acceptable stroke. Long story short, not a rod for me but unique looking and others may really like it. And the other rods in this series may each have their own unique character -- that's the way it usually is.

New to fiberglass, I tried the 7'6" 4wt. Redington butter stick today and liked it very much, even casting a generic 4 weight line provided by the shop. I intend to fish it with a Rio 5 wt double taper. It is fun, light in the hand and handled a bit of wind well. It tracks surprisingly well. I plan to use it for small trout streams, some bluegill ponds and even places where I typically find smaller small mouth bass. With a Holschlag bitty blockhead (very small popper) and a trailing tellico nymph, I am betting that this will do great on some local ponds. In the spring, the spawning bluegills should put a great bend in this rod!

Here's another. 02 on a different Butter Stick (BS ). I cast the 7'6" 4wt today with a Rio Gold WF4 and found that I liked it better than the 8' 5wt I tried a few weeks ago. Contrary to a couple other reviews, I think the rod is labeled properly as a 4wt but that just illustrates the fact that people have different preferences with how they like a rod to load. I found that this line loaded adequately at short distance and progressively better as I reached out further. The sweet spot distance would be about 20-40 ft. Like the 8' BS, it's a medium action rod and somewhat floppy (prone to oscillation and poor damping) but not as much as the 8 footer. As Lugan pointed out and I agree; the 8' BS has substantial swing weight but this 7.6" BS feels very nice, not heavy at all. I'm not a big fan of the Scott F2 7'7" 4wt but I like it better than this one inch shorter BS -- but not $400 better. I prefer a bit faster glass so I won't be buying this 7'6" BS but for the price, I do recommend it. I think it would be a great first glass rod to use for small stream trout or for bluegill.

That's an informative review. Thanks for the comparative analysis.

It's a 5-6. I could use a 6 on it to cast in tighter but I mainly use it on larger rivers, and I like it with the 5.

Took the BS out yesterday for a test drive in the rain. Fished dry and dropper on a mid-size freestone for about 3 hours then went to nearby tailrace and finished the day throwing longer. I really like this rod. Curve casts, aerial mends ... It's not as well finished as my Steffen but at a hundred dollars less I think it's well worth the money.

Balances at the winding check with my Red Truck Marquis knockoff.
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Bends well even with lame little nine-inch hatchery product at other end.
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Couldn't take pic during this fight (fishing solo). But it was a blast.
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Redington is pretty much good across the board ... Their CT is the best deal on the market by far ... Their Predator is a great rod too ... I know how Redington does things though ... And I'll wait til next year to buy a Butter Stick

For a long time I presumed that Redington's reputation for being value oriented kept it's overall rep in check. It appears that their reputation has greatly improved in recent years. Every review I read refers to them as a quality player and are seen as one of the big boys. Their Vapen rod won the most and one of, if not "the" highest award available internationally.

I've tested some of the Buttersticks and found them quite impressive. I agree about the Western taper grip, a Superfine tapered grip in a diameter large enough for the average hand would have been preferable. I do like, however, what they refer to as the type A grip - a cigar grip/cork and ring set reel seat combination. This is somewhat similar to the combination used on Phillipson's "Epoxite" Registered Midge Rod series.

I do not understand the discontent expressed by a few here regarding the cosmetics and appointments/hardware. I believe that Redington's referring to retro (though the word design is used, this I presume was an ad writers witticism) is in truth meant with regard to ones choosing fiberglass in an era where the material is used in limited fashion for select buyers. The cosmetics are contemporary, with an eye to attracting young buyers, those into extreme fly fishing, and those anglers who just like having something with standout appeal. The finish, hardware, etc., is great. Better than the Featherweight, that is impressive at it's price point for certain, but the Butterstick is in a different league.

I own a 6'6" Dave Lewis (considered in same league with Steffen) and a 7'6" Phillipson Johnson era 800 series rod, considered by many to be the most cosmetically pleasing glass rod ever made. I see the Butterstick as being very close to these in it's finish and appointments. I would say the Buttersticks are finished comparably to glass rods costing $400 or more.

Most importantly, the rods in the Butterstick series casting characteristics are all appropriate for each line weight and length configuration. BTW, over-lining for shorter casts is not a detractor, in fact, it is a time honored practice that even Rajeff recommends.

Don't let past bias undervalue the Buttersticks when considering them - they are right up there with the Echo, and Orvis glass, and the price difference between the Echo and the Redington is small enough, that shipping costs or the cost of gas can shorten the gap to negligible if you get free shipping on the Redington.

I'm not so convinced about the resale or trade. I've had fancy looking rods that I released from service - because they were not as good as some of the more simple looking rods I own. My Kosmic is beautiful and fishes beyond belief, But I love my Granger as well - more basic cosmetics - still a great fishing tool. Sold my Devine - a beautiful rod, but it was so-so in the performance department. My 50's Phillipson glass rods are very basic cosmetically, but are outstanding casting tools - wouldn't give them up easily.

The Buttersticks are very handsome rods as well as great performers. The individuals that give in to going fancier, would simply be feeding their own ego. But, to each their own. If they can afford it and turning heads matter, there are some good performers out there with a tad more flare than the Echo and the Butterstick.

I'm not certain I get your meaning. I was simply commenting on your saying that B-Stick purchasers would invariably trade or sell their rods in order to have one with fancier cosmetics.

As far as Chris, Greywolf, I am one who has complemented them - they make outstanding casting tools with unquestionable visual appeal.