I was curious to know what is the lightest possible rod and reel for under $260 (just out of curiosity). 

Quantum Smoke rod with a Lews LFS Speed spool. The rod is $140 and the reel is $100. The 7' MH-F Smoke rod is 3.7oz and the Lews reel is 7oz even making the combo 10.7oz alone or about 11oz when spooled with line.

Weights will vary a little the Okuma Helios rods are light yet still have good power. For $107 at walmart the 7' M/F Helios rod weighs 3.3-3.4oz. My 7' MH/F Helios weighs 3.5oz its $135 at walmart. These rods also have good balance with light reels so thats a plus.

My gen1 Quantum Smoke 7' M/F rod is 3.4oz can be found on ebay 100-120 I feel its a better rod than the Helios

So if getting 7' M/F Helios $150 left for reel. BPS White JM Carbonlite is 5.8oz $120, at times, on sale for around $90. How good the reel is I had the black and took it back lacked smoothness but good caster.