Hardy Marksman Z Review - New Saltwater Fly Rods
Hardy recently released the new Marksman Z saltwater fly rods which we thought looked pretty interesting so we tested them out. It's already getting a little crowded in the saltwater fly rod arena, with the new Orvis Helios D, the Thomas & Thomas Sextant and other saltwater rods being so good. Particularly the extremely popular Orvis Helios D is phenomenally good. We are looking at how these new Hardy rods compare to the top saltwater fly rods we have tested extensively for years.
Some people are boring. This rod is not.
First, looks. The obvious part: These are really cool rods - Hardy always does a great job with design. I like the color, some people complain about it. But some people are boring. This rod is not. I don't need to see yet another grayish black, dull saltwater fly rod. Looking at you, Sage and Orvis. The Salt R8 is dark blue, technically, but it's more of a bluish clear coat over a very dark blank. And of course the Orvis Helios D is just matte black. Scott Sectors are raw carbon fiber, which is awesome to me, but customers do sometimes complain about it. At least they used bright blue accent colors. Anyway, I like this rod. It looks great, feels great, I like the cork design, the reel seat is great. Great design. For me this is a 10/10 in that department. Not interested in boring.
So if you are keeping track, it wins in looks over most other rods. This is of course subjective but I'm the guy writing the review. For me the best-looking designs today are by Hardy and Thomas & Thomas.
*We will be updating this review soon with a more in-depth test of these rods and more fly lines as well, especially new releases like the SA Magnitude Balance taper.
I'll start with the 8wt: Definitely excellent for Bonefish lines. Heavier lines, less so. Great for lighter Redfish setups and other finesse situations. *Keep in mind, other reviewers like Trident have noticed similar things about the 9wt Z as well, that it's perhaps a bit soft for most typical Permit lines. Cast it in wind or with heavier lines to see for yourself. Again, don't misunderstand, I am not knocking Hardy here. I always try to go through all the pros and cons of any new piece of gear.
I own a few cool rods from Hardy like the unique Hardy Ultralite SR as well as these new ones which I recently bought. I love Hardy, it's a really neat brand. The new Marksman Z is a very nice rod, it just isn't "the best" in terms of versatility. However as specialized rods for tropical species like Bonefish and Tarpon, these do very well. With that in mind, for example, in our fly rod combos here at the shop I skipped offering an 8wt Striper setup with this rod. I also added a "Finesse" fly line option for the Bonefish combo. And with those lighter lines this is among the very best 8wt rod options for Bonefish.
The larger sizes of the Marksman Z are a different story. In challenging tropical conditions and wind, the larger weights of the Marksman Z like the 10/11/12wt have plenty of power. The Marksman 8wt hits the mark perfectly with Bonefish lines, but for some reason it just isn't as great with some of the other lines we tested. It's excellent with SA Bonefish (true-to-weight line) but started to get bogged down with heavier lines typical of general flats fishing instead of purely Bonefish. The other models vary a bit based on fly lines. The consensus seems to be around the 10wt and 11wt being maybe a bit stiff but definitely powerful, and the 12wt being a cannon. Other reviewers said that even Grand Slam barely bent the 12wt, which is crazy. That's fairly stiff for anything apart from GT / Giant Trevally and Sailfish/offshore setups. Could be very nice for those species though. Again, there are more balanced fly rods out there that can deliver a wider range of performance across different fly lines and more versatility for the price point. But these do look cool for sure.
This Marksman definitely hits the mark for Bonefish.
Keep in mind that nobody sponsors us or pays us to review anything one way or another, and we pay for everything we review ourselves. We only carry the best gear here at Salt Fly Pro and to back that up, we test everything else too. We own samples of every saltwater fly rod worth having (and some that probably aren't), just for review purposes. We have nothing at all against Hardy, and we don't care who wins best fly rod. Cast the rods with the lines we suggest! Try them! This rod in 8wt is very nice for lighter Bonefish lines but less so with heavier flats lines. The 8wt is very good with SA Bonefish line. If you mainly fish for Bonefish, this rod works great with that specific line. But it's not an "all-purpose" 8wt the way some of the others in this price range are.
Another major fly shop did a review recently and rated this new rod as being close to the Scott Sector (an excellent saltwater rod). We think that's fairly accurate relative to our assessment overall but the difference will come down to the fly line and the species you are after.
Considering that beginners usually seem to opt for heavier lines, I'm not sure they are being set up for success with a rod like this that will struggle in wind and under heavier lines than those used for Bonefish. If you are willing to ignore the guys telling you to over-line your rod, and learn to cast properly, you will enjoy these rods more.
We will continue adding to our testing until we have enough different lines evaluated with these rods to get a more complete sense of what they can do with the most popular fly lines. Feel free to go cast it against other rods like we have mentioned and make your own decisions. We are here to help customers understand all these different fly rod options and help you choose the right gear.
Model-by-Model Notes and Line Recommendations: (*note this section is a work in progress and we do try to update as new fly lines come out each year)
6wt - Why are you using this size in saltwater? Are you trying to catch some bait? This is actually nice if you want a crossover freshwater/streamer and ultralight saltwater option. Glades and backcountry fans will probably enjoy this as well.
I'd go with the same suggestions as below for Bonefish lines. Not that many saltwater lines are offered in 6wt anymore honestly.
7wt - Go with SA Bonefish / SA Bonefish PLUS, SA Redfish line, all are bestsellers and work great. I like lighter lines with this and the 8wt personally.
8wt - I always test a TON of fly lines with any 8 weight and the Marksman Z handled most of them pretty well:
SA Bonefish Lightest line tested, true-to-weight at 210gr and performed perfectly. If you can cast reasonably well, this is the line for this rod.
SA Bonefish PLUS - Nearly a perfect line for this rod. You can check out my full review of the new fly line here.
SA Infinity Salt - Another excellent line on most saltwater rods. This line is a half size heavy but has a fairly long head length and can carry line at distance very well. A heavier but much longer and more tapered head than Redfish, Grand Slam, or other common types of saltwater lines, which allows much more control at distance and really continues to load the rod well even with a lot of line out.
SA Redfish - It's a Redfish line so not a long head; works great on pretty much every rod I've tried it with. Redfish fans rejoice, this is an easy choice.
Airflo Flats Tactical Taper - This is a great line, performs well on almost every rod I have tested it on. You can go up to the Universal Taper (next one on this list) but personally I don't recommend doing so with this rod.
Airflo Flats Universal Taper - A very nice all-around saltwater line that not a lot of people know about. I feel this is too heavy for the Marksman Z in 9wt and below. I'd skip this line for the 8wt. *That also goes for any other heavy fly lines in an 8wt.
SA Balance (New) - I happened to already have this on one of my reels due to reviewing the new fly line. That worked out well since I like it with this rod too. I would say it's better for intermediate to advanced casters though. For most people Grand Slam will probably be best.
SA Grand Slam - Naturally this is going to be one of the most popular choices since it is for most rods in 9wt size. Short head, loads the rod easily, quick casts without a lot of false casting.
Cortland Backcountry - This is a cool line from Cortland. If you know, you know.
SA Redfish - It's a Redfish line so not a long head; works great on pretty much every rod I've tried it with. Redfish fans rejoice, this is an easy choice.
SA Infinity -
10wt: Great all-around saltwater size for many different fish species, most likely the main targets will be medium-sized Tarpon, Jacks, Barracuda, or big Permit.
SA Grand Slam - Always popular. Works great.
Tarpon lines - Yes, definitely great.
SA Balance Taper (New) - I haven't tested this one in this size yet, but I will.
11wt: The go-to Tarpon rod weight, especially here in Florida.
SA Tarpon This has always been the best-selling choice for the majority of my Tarpon customers. SA Magnitude Tarpon with Clear Tip is extremely popular.
SA Grand Slam - Works great. Always popular.
SA Infinity Salt - This is a nice line but not nearly as popular in 11wt as Tarpon lines are, in general. Advanced casters may like this.
12wt: BIG Tarpon, Giant Trevally & light offshore fly fishing -
SA Grand Slam - Very popular, great choice for Tarpon etc.
SA Tropical Titan - Works great for Arapaima, pelagic species near the surface, GT's, etc.
Cortland Offshore Heavy Sink / Big Game Intermediate - Great for pelagic species / offshore use.
*Worth noting that Hardy has opted not to make any rod larger than this one. Honestly I get it, they rarely sell above 12wt. Some other companies do offer a 13wt, 14wt, or 15wt (and TFO even makes a 16wt). My personal pick if you want a rod larger than 12wt is the 14wt Helios. But the TFO Bluewater is a killer value if you don't plan to use the rod often.
