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[KLX]

So i'm looking at saltwater reels for my sage TCR 7wt 10'. There are a few options but the weight of the reels varies greatly. Anywhere from 3.5oz to 7oz!

Does anyone have any expert input on the impact of the reels' weight? Needless to say the price ranges from $200(7oz ) to $660(3.5oz) .

[marmot]

If you can feel the effect of a reels weight on your rod when you are casting, it is too heavy.  Especially with a 7wt or up you want to stay as light as possible because the size of the rod already means it will be a little heavier and wear you out a little more as the day goes on.  For most, (unless you have incredible stamina in your arms) the first couple of hours casting always produce the best casts of the day, and as the day wears on and your casting arms wear out, things can get a little "sloppy"   If you use lighter gear this will keep you from entering the sloppy zone too soon.  At least that's my own theory.  If the TCR is the rod I think it is ( i believe ive held one..) it's a nice light rod and should be mated to a nice light reel.  Balanced, I guess.  Newsman or RP3 could elaborate (or dispel if I'm out to lunch!) I'm sure.

[Jamison Jay]

The TCR is a lighter rod but a broom handle to cast. It was created for competition distance casting not so much fishing, that said, if your arm doesn't get tired casting it, the reel weight won't affect you much. I've heard a ton of guys talk about rod balance, but for the most part it's not something that's gonna affect you much with that set-up. Just my opinion. Get a reel that's tough, anodized and doesn't break the bank so you can still afford gas to your fishing hole.

[buncranabop]

A balanced rod and reel are key if one wants to cast well time after time and to balance your rod with a reel you should fit the reel in question and place the rod reel setup on your fore finger with the fore finger under the furthest forward piece of your cork handle. Just at the curved part.  If your setup tilts back towards the reel side your reel is too heavy but if it tilts forward towards your rod tip the reel is too light. A perfect match will balance nicely.

[Jamison Jay]

I'm gonna dis-agree with ya buncranabop. In this situation would you balance the reel and rod with line on reel or not. Do you string the line down the rod? because it's an 8wt it will probably be chucking tips, so which tip do you use to balance it? when casting you have over 30ft of line out the tip, so should you pullthat much off the reel then balance? Or does none of this matter because because when you are casting the force put on the rod by loading the line is far more than the reel could ever weigh. So the only time balancing comes into play is when you are fishing the line down the river, or sitting in the tackle store deciding on a reel.

[HOOK]

to be honest i prefer my reel to be just slightly on the heavier side when balancing my rods. this is of course the reel with backing on it only, line gets added later. having your reel a bit heavy will actually make the rod feel lighter in the aspect that it helps the pendulum action of casting as long as you dont "break your wrist" as the saying goes 

[Chrome Mykiss]

The weight of a saltwater fly reel is only one factor to consider when choosing a reel. The most popular and best salt water reels are actually in the upper range in terms of weight. Look at Islander, Abel, Billy Pate, Tibor, they're all in the 6-8 oz range. Ted Juracsik who design the Tibor and Billy Pate reels designed them with durability and function in mind, that's why they have a solid cage. Reels that have a ported cage will be slightly lighter. The construction of a saltwater reel should be evaluated carefully, all the components should be saltwater safe by being anodized, made of stainless steel or sealed. 
The common element in all great saltwater reels are a strong drag system. The majority of best saltwater reels (Abel, Tibor, Islander, Bauer MSL, MXP) have a draw bar cork composite drag system where the drag pressure is created by the spool being drawn in to the cage and friction on a large drag surface. The lastest rage in drag systems are carbon fiber or engineered composite material drag systems, reels such as Hatch, Nautilus CCF or NV, Ross Momentum LT and Bauer Rogue. These reels usually have a maintenance free sealed drag system which perform with consistent pressure in any condition, even underwater. The lightest saltwater reels on the market usually deploy a sealed conical drag system, which have the smallest drag surface area. Although these reels are light weight their conical drag systems have a short lifespan with strenuous saltwater use, especially with bonefish, roosterfish, albacore, tuna, etc.
You should ask yourself, what species of saltwater fish am I going to fish for? How often will this reel be used?
There's a reason why saltwater guides and professionals choose certain reels. They have been proven over time that they're dependable and will stand up to the abuse these people and fish put them through.

[Todd Oishi]

I use an Islander LX3.4 - Large Arbor Fly Reel on the exact same rod and find it to be a perfect match - in every respect...

Here's a link to Islander's website for more details on this reel: http://islander.com/products.php?prdRef=lx34.xml&specs=false&lbm=true&lblw=false