Should I be looking at BFS?

[softwateronly]

On 10/9/2021 at 9:12 AM, kazact95 said:

Hello all! I'm a fairly new bass fisherman looking for some advise on a new setup. There are a few things I've learned I prefer in my short time fishing, and one of them are baitcasters. They feel "Right" to me and I'd like to replace my spinning rod with some sort of caster. Another thing I'm adamant about is casting distance. I fish from shore on very pressured water. If I can't cast 20-30 Yards to inaccessible shoreline, I'm not gonna catch much. BFS and finesse fishing in general aren't about distance, but it's what I need.

The setups main job will be throwing the following rigs:

1/15 oz Ned head + TRD craw/creature = ~5.1g

Weightless Finesse worm = ~5.5g

1/16 oz Okashira Screw head + 3" Spark Shad = ~5.95g

1/15 oz Ned head + Normal TRD = ~6g

1/10 oz Ned head + TRD craw/creature = ~6.1g

1/8 oz Skirted Ned Head + TRD craw = ~6.8g

1/10 oz Ned head + Normal TRD = ~7g

Weightless Plastics = ~7g

1/8 oz Shakeyhead + Finesse worm = ~8.8g

1/4 oz Keitech Jig + TRD Craw = ~10.3g

Weightless Plastics = ~10.5g

That's literally everything this rod will see with accompanying (True)weights. A range of about 3/16-3/8. I'm currently planning on purchasing the Shimano Expride in 7'2" ML+ with a stated range of 1/8-5/8. My current plan is to pair it with a Curado BFS. I also considered a Curado MGL 70k for the spool capacity, but I'm worried about throwing the rigs I have listed under 6g. Is that BFS reel territory?

What about the rod? I'm looking at it over the Sierra BFS rods mostly due to the stated lure range. 3/8 oz Weightless plastics like 5 inch senkos would overpower the Sierras I believe.

I could always Move The 1/4 Keitechs and Weightless senkos to another rod, I suppose. Planning on getting a 6'11" M+ Poison Adrena at the same time as the "BFS" combo, and I believe it will handle lures around 3/8 oz fine.

 

On 10/9/2021 at 9:54 AM, fishwizzard said:

The Sierra BFS rods will be way over powered by a lot of the presentations you want to throw, around 3/16oz is where it tops out imho.  There are some reviews floating around for the Expride ML+. I feel like people found the rod a little stiffer/more powerful than listed, which may still work for you as you’re never really dipping far below 3/16oz.  

I fish a lot of BFS and honestly in your situation I would look at getting two rods or prioritizing one end of that weight spectrum and figuring out another way to fish the rest of it.  One of the Light power Major Craft BFS rods would be a good compromise at the lower end and the Megabass XXX Black Themis would be one for the upper.  
 

The Phenix BFS rods are also worth a look, I know the old Recon 2 that I had was on the slightly slower side of fast and it was a very easy to cast right across pretty much the range you’re looking at. 

Edit:  the PA 610m+ is an amazing rod and really shines in the 3/8-5/8 range.  Super versatile and fun rod. 

 

Just want to add that I agree w/ fishwizzard that the PA 6'11M+ would be a fantastic "heavy" rod for what you're talking about.  I absolutely love how lightweight, sensitive, and responsive the rod feels.  I never want to put it down.

 

scott

[dave]

I've been using a Castaway Invicta II called "The Donk"  rated down to 1/16" with a JDM Calcutta 100D to cast weightless Little Dippers.  I have Curado BFS XG on order and am considering a Taipan rod.

[WRB]

If your goal is to catch 1 to 3 lb bass match your tackle to that.

Back in the 50’s my 1st bait caster was a Langley Target reel that weighed 4 oz, had a drilled light weight aluminum spool that held 50 yards of 10 lb braid. The rod was a Conolin light weight tubular glass that could cast 1/8 lures easily. 

Jason Lucas was the original BSF advocate back in the 50’s, he was Spirts Afield fishing editor, Lucas on Bass book is a good read. Jay was also my pen pal.

If you glance at my 5 PB giant bass all caught on tackle with 10 to 12 lb mono line and light weight rods, not BSF but close to today’s finesse tackle with the exception of my rods are 5 power using 7/16 oz jigs.

I think BSF maybe taken things to light tackle where ML for bass should be the  

the minimum for bass.

Tom

[PressuredFishing]

On 10/9/2021 at 7:12 AM, kazact95 said:

Hello all! I'm a fairly new bass fisherman looking for some advise on a new setup. There are a few things I've learned I prefer in my short time fishing, and one of them are baitcasters. They feel "Right" to me and I'd like to replace my spinning rod with some sort of caster. Another thing I'm adamant about is casting distance. I fish from shore on very pressured water. If I can't cast 20-30 Yards to inaccessible shoreline, I'm not gonna catch much. BFS and finesse fishing in general aren't about distance, but it's what I need.

The setups main job will be throwing the following rigs:

1/15 oz Ned head + TRD craw/creature = ~5.1g

Weightless Finesse worm = ~5.5g

1/16 oz Okashira Screw head + 3" Spark Shad = ~5.95g

1/15 oz Ned head + Normal TRD = ~6g

1/10 oz Ned head + TRD craw/creature = ~6.1g

1/8 oz Skirted Ned Head + TRD craw = ~6.8g

1/10 oz Ned head + Normal TRD = ~7g

Weightless Plastics = ~7g

1/8 oz Shakeyhead + Finesse worm = ~8.8g

1/4 oz Keitech Jig + TRD Craw = ~10.3g

Weightless Plastics = ~10.5g

That's literally everything this rod will see with accompanying (True)weights. A range of about 3/16-3/8. I'm currently planning on purchasing the Shimano Expride in 7'2" ML+ with a stated range of 1/8-5/8. My current plan is to pair it with a Curado BFS. I also considered a Curado MGL 70k for the spool capacity, but I'm worried about throwing the rigs I have listed under 6g. Is that BFS reel territory?

What about the rod? I'm looking at it over the Sierra BFS rods mostly due to the stated lure range. 3/8 oz Weightless plastics like 5 inch senkos would overpower the Sierras I believe.

I could always Move The 1/4 Keitechs and Weightless senkos to another rod, I suppose. Planning on getting a 6'11" M+ Poison Adrena at the same time as the "BFS" combo, and I believe it will handle lures around 3/8 oz fine.

As a bfs fisherman if you are fairly new, dont get into bfs. I urge you not to because the cheapest bfs reel that is solid imo is 60-70, but it's Chinese and it's not great and they have all started squeaking for me and gears gotten loose. The first usdm reel for bfs is 190$, and is a Shimano. Rods aren't much better. In my opinion spinning reels are better for bass than casting for a few reasons,, 1 you are going to struggle with  3/16ths, and 1/8th oz lures and below (casting distance wise) and they will not cast as accurately as spinning. Second you can't cast a bfs reel as far as spinning, third  bfs reels Dont have backreeling and if you want to land your pb on light tackle that can be very important. Third being they aren't great for 8 pound line and above because they don't hold much line, so if you dropshot or ned with 8lb or higher, you won't be able to cast your  30 yards you need. Bfs isnt unpractical for bass, but cost wise it doesn't have a significant advantage to spinning, and you can buy a higher quality spinning reel for the money compared to a Chinese bfs reel. I only use my bfs reels for two very very niche techniques, everything else is spinning because it's superior. First thing I use for bfs is small pencil walking baits or buzzbaits/poppers because the faster gear ratio is important. Second I use them for trout flipping and pitching overgrown creeks, if you are finesse fishing in a lake and not using these techniques, you are better off with spinning by a mile. I would reccomend getting a more versatile technique setup instead of bfs if you don't have certain rod techniques already.  if you are new you should invest that money in tackle and actually getting on the water. If you are looking for a very solid finesse setup here are my reccomendations, I'd wait till black friday though

 

50-100$ reels (spinning not bfs)

Pfluger president

Shimano Sahara

Diawa legalis OR regal

Lews mach 2 (ONLY 70$ REEL SPORTING AN ALUMINUM FRAME)

 

Rods- so many options many are good but personally I love my lews xfinity and I love pheonix rods, but lews are a little on the heavy side so be aware, also plenty of guys that can give reccomendations

 

Finally if you have money to throw out the window and you REALLY want to get into bfs...

 

Budget bfs reels: kastking zephyr, fishband gh 100, tsurinoya spirit fox. (There are newer ones but I can only reccomend what I have). P.S they are all chinesium.

 

Budget BFS rod: Shimano sensilite, OR acehawk cu double OR kuying Teton ttc.

 

High end bfs reel:Shimano curado bfs

 

High end rod: Sierra rod

[Holetail]

I have played around and dipped my toes in the BFS game this summer. Didn’t want to spend a fortune so picked up a KK Zephyr and a Sensilite rod. This setup is a lot of fun catching pond bass in the 1-2 lb range but I wouldn’t want to tangle with much larger. Ive since ordered some shallow spools for Pro Max and Revo reels I already had and prefer them to the KK. That reel just felt like a toy and the drag wasn’t very smooth. The Abu reels aren’t the greatest, but perform better without a doubt. Mostly using them on M rods to throw weightless plastics. Ive noticed casting is more effortless with shallow vs regular spool. I still use the Sensilite with a Pro Max to throw 1/16 oz slider heads with a ribbon tail. Casts easy and fun to change things up a bit. I think I got the spools for $25 each off eBay so this may be an option without dropping a bunch of $. Wish I would have just done this from the start. 

[QED]

Having fished UL spinning gear (2-4lb test) most of my life, I don't find true BFS gear using 6-8lb test particularly limiting or problematic in most circumstances.  Where heavier gear is required, I won't hesitate to use that too.

[JustJames]

Having land a bunch of 2-4lb bass on UL rod both spinning and casting with 4-6lb line and my 8.5lb PB on Majorcraft Light/BFS on 6lb leader, I can foresee some problems and already proved it true this recent year.  First of any cover with too light of a rod it hard to turn or control fish.  In weed which I lost a bunch of good one when using 6lb line because fish would buried itself into weed and you don’t have enough power both rod(ML) and line to pull the fish out quick enough, end up with bare hook and a ton of salad.

I up size to 10 and 15lb braid (to cut thru weed) with a little bit more backbone rod and able to land most fish.

Yes I still use shallow spool reel or what they call BFS but again it is far from being true BFS. And of course I considered myself lucky to land that my first bass on 6lb line.

CQ50 6lb braid and Compre M 1/8-3/8oz

Ray’s spool on Zillion with 15lb braid and Medium Cruical.

10lb braid Shimano Brenious,Zodias ML 3/16oz

 

[QED]

I landed this one on BFS gear:

[fishwizzard]

There is a separation between “BFS” and “UL casting” that confuses discussion about the topics.  Bass-specific BFS reels have plenty of capacity for ~10lb line and the rods tend to be built with very progressive tapers, ie they have very light tips that transition to fairly stout backbones.  Reels meant for UL/trout/inshore fishing have shallower spools and the rods usually have less sharply progressive tapers and lack much power in the backbone.  
 

 

Didn’t get a weight on her, but she was using a MB P3 Criffhanger, a “Light” BFS rod, and 7lb Sniper and got her out of some light hydrilla w/o feeling like I was pushing the rod much at all.  If I had been using one if my UL casting rods I don’t think I would have been able to land her.  

 

I think the relatively recent availability of BFS/UL tackle on Aliexpress is what caused this confusion.  With most every Japanese brand I have seen, their rods are fairly well labeled with “BFS/Bait Finesse” or are obviously part of a bass rod line and have powers/tapers deisgned for general light-cover bass fishing.  Most of the Chinese brand on Aliexpress use much more generic language and most of the rods there are more generic L/UL rods with power/tapers not well suited to anything other then open water bass fishing.  

[JustJames]

And I landed this 

sahara 750 8lb braid

shallow spool alphas 10lb braid rod Majorcraft light/BFS

Shallow spool pixy, Tsurinoya UL

 

Landing a big fish with BFS setup doesn’t mean a thing. Landed B I G fish with light line and rod, you just need a good smooth drag and patience. Add some equations into it like cover, tree, weed and your rate would drop faster than stock index.

Ppl said they landed those type fish with light tackle all the time, but would they intentionally target those fish with such light tackle? I don’t think so.

Again I have plenty of BFS gears suitable for catching smaller bass (bass and Ajing rod not trout rod) which I use from time to time just for fun and not too serious, but if I target bigger fish, under other circumstances beside open water on a boat, I would use other suitable gear.

Beside all of this OP lures listed are way far to considered as BFS and on top of that he is new bass fisherman.

You are experience light tackle fisherman, I respect that, but to compare yourself with other especially new angler, it might give him a tough time than helping him.

 

 

[JustJames]

Come to think of it for those that considered themself BFS fisherman, or invest in BFS gears, what type of lure are you guy using for bass, 1/15oz Ned rig? 2” crankbait? 4” senko? 1/8oz Shakey head? 1/64oz trout magnet?

[QED]

I use the full range of range of the lighter Zman ned jigheads/hooks with their TRD worms.  Weightless wacky rigged 4" senkos.  Also, spinnerbaits from 1/8 to 1/4oz.

[bulldog1935]

here's a bass box

finesse buzz and spinnerbaits, light neds

 

and since my BFS all range bass rod lets me fish up to 5/8 oz, a crankbait box

 

I more often fish inshore with tiny paddletails, stream trout crankbaits, 1/16 oz Vudu shrimp, stinger-hook spoons...

This is always about distance with light lures, mostly tide passes and winter glass minnows, also under the lights at night.  

For the flats, will usually fish heavier lures on ML, MM, or MH. 

[fishwizzard]

4 hours ago, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

Come to think of it for those that considered themself BFS fisherman, or invest in BFS gears, what type of lure are you guy using for bass, 1/15oz Ned rig? 2” crankbait? 4” senko? 1/8oz Shakey head? 1/64oz trout magnet?

This is my “1/4oz” jig and worm box. It’s what I use with the aforementioned P3 Criffhanger.  Most every presentation I can build out of it will weigh 3/16-5/16oz.  I have a similar box set up for “3/8oz” jig and worm stuff that I use with a heavier BFS outfit.   I also have kits of smaller presentations I use with my UL tackle but for the  most part they only see use when wading small waters or in completely open ponds. 

[QED]

BFS tackle - the elaztech stuff needs to be segregated or kept in original packaging.

[kazact95]

This thread gave me quite a bit to think about over the last couple of weeks. All of the suggestions and opinions on what "bfs" even means gave me a much better perspective on the subject.

 

I've pretty much decided on what I'll be grabbing this Black Friday, thought I'd post it for those who may search the thread later.

 

Ultralight BFS Combo: Teton 6'3" UL / Curado BFS - To cast lures between 1/16-1/8 oz true weight. Mostly moving so no need for sensitivity in the rod. Also, no need for backbone, panfish and dink bass on ponds with zero cover. Had no intention of getting this setup before I dove deep into what people were using their BFS(and ultralight spinning) setups for. 

 

Bass BFS Combo: Expride 7'2" ML+ / Curado BFS or MGL 70k(Undecided) - To cast lures 3/16-3/8 oz true weight. Almost entirely bottom contact. Rod has the right mix of sensitivity, lure rating, and backbone. A bit longer than I'd like. Wish some of the JDM BFS rods would make their way to the states. The PoisonAdrena BFS, Zodias BFS, and Megabass Black Themis are all rods I would most likely have chosen over the Expride if they were available stateside.

 

Bonus "Heavy" Combo: Poison Adrena 6'11" M+ / Curado 150 MGL - To cast just about everything else. 3/8 oz and up. Most of what I throw caps out at 5/8 oz. Exception being 3/8 oz Chatterbait and trailer. Those things are deceptively heavy. JackHammer and a BPS knockoff zako is nearly a full oz.

 

 

A big thank you to everyone who took the time to reply, it really did help.

 

 

[redmeansdistortion]

6 hours ago, kazact95 said:

Ultralight BFS Combo: Teton 6'3" UL / Curado BFS - To cast lures between 1/16-1/8 oz true weight. Mostly moving so no need for sensitivity in the rod. Also, no need for backbone, panfish and dink bass on ponds with zero cover. Had no intention of getting this setup before I dove deep into what people were using their BFS(and ultralight spinning) setups for. 

Consider the 6'6"L over the UL.  It does 1/16 just fine and will have more backbone in the event you need it.  I've wrangled some big Lake St Clair smallies with mine when fishing for perch and gills.  Even some of the rock bass around here put a nice bend in it.

[WC53]

On 10/11/2021 at 3:57 PM, Bass_Fishing_Socal said:

Same reason I always said I’m not a BFS guy to use UL rod targeting bass and try to avoid giving any comments.

Since I already started let me say this.

@kazact95 you don’t need to go all the way  to BFS to cast those lures. I use my stock Curado 70 or Alphas SV 105 to cast 1/15 Ned rig with either TRD or 1/2 ZinkerZ all the time and as well as weightless trick worm. But to have shallow light weight spool is just icing on the cake and can help you cast further more accuracy and less headaches. you do need the right rod though, just regular ML bass rod with 1/8oz lure weight with softer tip should be able to handle those weight just fine plus you have backbone when you need it.

BTW I have a few nice super lightweight spinning setup but I also prefer baitcaster.

New old guy here. I have been BFS fishing since the curado came out, but still struggle finding that “right” rod for bigger fish. Trout, no problem, but a mod-fast with a light tip to throw a true 1/8 (1/2 top range but rare) with arse to pull a bass or redfish out from a dock? just watched a video on a youtube Channel, and trying to go cheaper than their recommended Expride or Loomis parabolic cranking rod.  Any suggestions 

 

 

[bulldog1935]

@WC53

The rod you're describing isn't that tough to find.  A true 1/8 oz to 1/2 oz and keeping redfish out of dock piers (or under kayak) is exactly my full-time salt ML -  13Fishing Omen Green  7'1" ML - very light in hand and very cost-effective. $120 and good warranty. 

It would work equally well for bass. 

I have mine matched with a BFS-raced Zillion,

and it's a blast on slot red (after slot red). 

Under load with a red taking drag. 

[WC53]

Would that throw the 1/16 yozuri pin or rebel teeny?  Or even a weightless finesse plastic.

(After posting, I realized my grams to ounces math, was, well you know) . 

I remember seeing that rod n the holiday sale barrel a few years ago, but didn’t pick one up.  I have a couple rods which say they will throw that light, but the tips are just too fast for me.

 

[bulldog1935]

@WC53

Possibly, but it will throw the 1/8 oz to 150' - that likely depends more on the reel. 

Fishing 1/8 oz across this tide pass, I was thumbing the reel to keep it out of my friends - this photo is at max zoom.  We were on stacked snook this morning. 

I'm set up for UL lures with the Japanese Yamaga Blanks 82/B - it will throw the 1/16 oz to 140'.  Extreme fun, but a mid-grade price, powerful butt, and even though the mid is fast, it's so long that it bends a lot with big fish - even rat reds. 

13Fishing offers the Omen Green in 7'7" ML, which is rated 1/8-3/8 oz, but may throw the 1/16 better with your Curado. 

I brought up the 7'1' ML because it does everything you wished in your post. 

[optimator]

On 10/9/2021 at 11:37 AM, Mobasser said:

I don't own or have fished any BFS gear, but I still tend to think that with the lightweight stuff your using, you'll do better with a spinning rod.

Same here. 

[bulldog1935]

It's not true.  My BFS tackle will out-distance comparable-rated spinning tackle and with lighter lures. 

BFS almost never fouls tiny plug hooks on the line, because nothing ever goes slack, while spinning tackle may foul them 3 out of 4 casts. 

There are still niches where spinning is superior (tandem rigs, bobber rigs), but it's not Everywhere. 

[JustJames]

1 hour ago, optimator said:

Same here. 

There are many benefits using baitcaster with light weight lure compare to spinning. Don’t agree so fast if you never tried one. 
I’m not gonna talk about distance since that is varies from one to another.

Line twisted, especially the lure that trend to spin when cast like lipless crank, road runner, kastmaster or even simple small paddle tail with jig head.

Windknot, especially with techniques that retrieve line when slack like fluke, jerkbait.

Casting and accuracy, I cannot cast spinning with left hand, I can’t get accuracy with side arm cast, and it harder to pitch with. I much prefer baitcaster when fish in limited space.

[cyclops2]

There are many benefits to using a spinning setup. Average person will cast farther without spool tangles with or without wind. Cold temperatures causing bait casting reel with a small diameter and narrow spool to have  more stiff coils to tangle with mono.  There is NO CASTING  DRAG ADJUSTMENT .   Learning curve of spinning is always shorter with a spinning setup. My observations with loads of school children who never casted anything.

I remember volunteering to help kids first fish at a pond. Each kid would need 6 rods & 5 guys clearing the spools.  For just 1 child.  Almost every toss by a child was a tangle.