5/6 is a great place to start, more from the learning to cast standpoint than anything else. In my view it's not unlike learning to drive in an old truck that is predictable and steady vs. a little high RPM revver or a huge double-clutching tractor. That analogy is limited but close enough for government work.

And I have no idea how many rods and reels I have, I gave up on that inventory maintenance long ago...

If you are not real sure you will like it or not Walmart carries a $30 rig, rod, reel, line, and leader. It is not the greatest thing in the world but good enough to take some lessons on. I used mine for a year or so be fore getting really interested and then upgrading.

truth.

OK, if your realy gonna take the plunge forget what every one else has said. Go straight to your nearest fly shop, grap the biggest bottle of head cement they have, pour it into a plastic bag plunge your face in and inhale for 15 or 20 minutes. Less pain, Less money and you will truely be enlightened!! After that ask the person in the shop if they can show you a few tips on casting and let you try a few "starter" rods. Nothing is better than actually trying a few to get an idea of what might work best for you in the beggining. Most reputable fly shops are more than willing to help you out and most are staffed by knowledgable fly fishers. Others on this post can probably recommend a good shop near you.

Good Luck!

Buy quailty - cry once.
Buy cheap - cry twice.

George,

I couldn't have said it better. There are many "cheap" fly rods gathering dust in the corner of garages and storage rooms because folks got frustrated. There's a difference between cheap and inexpensive. One thing I tell folks when shopping for their first rod and they're looking for "cheap"... make sure there's at least one guide for every foot of fly rod plus the tip top. A buddy of mine purchased a cheap fly rod... it was a 9 ft. rod with only six guides and the tip top. Needless to say it didn't cast worth a darn.

Tx_state_angler, I'm all for spending good money on quality equipment. Love TFO! QPR is astounding. However; if you want a full setup for inexpensive I just found these on Overstock.com.
Fly OUtfit 1
Fly outfit 2

Now if you want inexpensive, to get into the sport and see if you'd like it, then this is the way to go. Does not state rod weight but perhaps if you called them they could tell you.

Here's a great starter kit that falls in your price range. http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores...OSSSELL_PRODUCT It doesn't come with a warranty like TFO, you can't get spare spools for the reel, and the reel won't last long in salt water, but if you want a good, inexpensive set-up to learn to fish on, this is a quality set-up.