BFS??

[N.Y. Yankee]

Pardon my ignorance, but am I to understand tat BFS, basically, is ultra light baitcasting gear? Is it the same idea as ultra light spin fishing, but with baitcasters?

[MickD]

Not quite the same in that with ultra light spin many anglers prefer to go short, like 5 and 5 1/2 foot rods.  That won't work nearly as well with BFS as longer blanks  give a more forgiving casting action and longer casts.  For BFS I recommend about 7 foot + a little , blanks that normally would be called spinning walleye blanks.  But with the right BFS reel and line,  and the right rod one can cast neds, very light jigs, etc with a baitcaster. 

[JediAmoeba]

Bait Finesse System.

 

Technology has gotten to the point where baitcasters and rods paired correctly are capable of comfortably and accurately casting 1/20 oz (or less) lures.  I love it but I do recognize it is a relatively niche thing.

[redmeansdistortion]

Two totally different things, although many think it's simply UL fishing with a baitcaster.  Most UL spinning rods have a parabolic blank which is typically only suitable for smaller species like panfish and smaller stream trout.  BFS rods use a progressive taper like that of a fly rod, there is less bend the closer you get to the butt and the blanks have a much faster recovery than a parabolic taper.  A progressive taper lets you apply heat to a running fish, even bigger fish like steelhead, lake run brown trout, and Atlantic salmon.  Those will quickly take you for a ride on your average UL or L spinning rod.

 

BFS rods come in a variety of flavors from UL to ML, even M and MH rods are available from some Japanese manufacturers.  Bass rods will usually be a faster action and rated for heavier line than their trout counterparts.  This is because bass aren't line shy by comparison and occupy heavier cover so you can get away with thicker line.  Fishing bass on a trout rod is a lot of fun because the more limber tip will keep the fish hooked through every surge and head shake, plus allow you to run lighter line if you choose.  

 

American fishermen really have no concrete definition for BFS which is why most associate it with ultralight fishing.  In Japan, baits marketed for BFS use can be up to 1/2 oz in weight while here many consider anything under 1/4 oz BFS territory.

[Tatulatard]

21 hours ago, N.Y. Yankee said:

Pardon my ignorance, but am I to understand tat BFS, basically, is ultra light baitcasting gear? Is it the same idea as ultra light spin fishing, but with baitcasters?

It encompasses light and medium light as well.  When referencing bass rods they are often significantly more powerful than you would assume for a L powered rod.  Line is that 7 to 10 lb flouro that you typically wouldn't want to throw on a spinning reel.  Baits range from 1/8 oz jigs to smaller version of neko rigs and weightless worms.  At the time this spilled out into western bass fishing circles in 2010ish things like neko rigs were unheard of.  That's usually how these things go.  They start in Japan and then enthusiast circles start using them and then they spill out into the mainstream.  I remember reading about guys buying some paddle tail from Japan called a "keitech" like 10 plus years ago and now they are on tacklewarehouse.  We are at that point now with BFS with a number of USDM rods available on tacklewarehouse.  Once it goes to normiewarehouse it's mainstream at that point.

 

There is also a subset, that is actually older, of using casting gear on little trout wands to throw true UL baits.  These stream rods are much shorter and softer for targeting trout with little micro baits you wouldn't typically throw for bass.  

[dave]

Again, think my (I think mine) coined term, BBFS, Bass Bait Finesse System...

[WRB]

Started in Japan and moved to America. 

The Casting reels are modified incorporating shallow light weight spools to cast .002-.004 diameter braid and light weight lures under 1/8 oz that bass angler normally use ML spinning.

Dobyns introduced BFS rods but most are JDAM rods. Daiwa and Shimano offer BFS casting reels. 

Tom

[redmeansdistortion]

On 6/27/2023 at 1:59 PM, Tatulatard said:

 

There is also a subset, that is actually older, of using casting gear on little trout wands to throw true UL baits.  These stream rods are much shorter and softer for targeting trout with little micro baits you wouldn't typically throw for bass.  

This is very inaccurate.  Trout rods come in a variety of lengths, powers, and actions just like bass rods.  Length has more to do with the environment and power has more to do with the size of the baits being used.  Action is also conducive to environment and intended baits.  In fast water you want a fast action rod to keep up with the current.  Creek rods are typically those of 5'6" and under ranging in power from XUL to ML and moderate to extra fast action.  Mainstream rods will usually be in the 5'6" to 8'6" range and L to MH power.  The faster rods are made for fishing twitch baits like the Smith D-Contact and Major Craft Eden.  More moderate rods are used for moving baits like the Daiwa Silver Creek Minnow and Tiemco Laks as well as spoons and spinners.  Furthermore, most trout are not the kind of species where micro baits are used.  Sure, brookies can be fished on sub 1/16 baits very effectively, but bigger CD05 and CD07 Countdowns work equally well.  Trout will take anything just like a bass.  If you want to catch bigger trout, size up your offering.  Larger trout have much more fish in their diets than their smolt counterparts who primarily eat insects and invertebrates simply because they are easier prey.  I'm throwing baits as large as the Rapala CD09 for big lake run rainbow and brown trout in skinny water from a 6'5" ML Smith Troutin' Spin.  Here's a pic of me fishing early fall browns.  That's a 7g Major Craft Eden 60H at the end of the line.  

 

 

The primary difference between a bass rod and trout rod is the taper.  Trout rods are tapered as such to allow for lighter line to be used for a much more wary fish.  The taper of the rod protects the lighter line and keeps the fish pinned through every surge and head shake while having enough backbone to steer them away from obstacles like logjams and root wads.  Trout rods aren't something like a bass rod where a one-size-fits-most mentality can be used.  It is much more specialized than that.  If the target is brook trout, then your logic definitely applies.  Anything bigger and it goes right out the window.

 

Most here are confused as to what BFS truly is.  It is new to us in the West and all we can do is compare it with what we currently have on the market; ultralight and light spinning tackle.  In Japan, BFS is for bass fishing, plain and simple.  It has nothing to do with trout fishing.  When browsing rods, bass rods will often have BF in the nomenclature stating that it is for bait finesse.  Trout rods are trout rods and bear no such nomenclature as it is a given that those species are commonly fished on smaller sub 3/8 oz baits regardless of the size of the fish, whether it's a 10" char or a 24" rainbow or cherry salmon.  People like myself and @bulldog1935 at times use the terms here interchangeably to make it easier to grasp for those not as familiar. 

[bulldog1935]

BFS - bait finesse system - is the reel, combination of lightweight shallow spool, low intertia bearings and threadline.  

(BFS was coined in print in 2000 by Hiroyuki Motoyama, and has been in production since 1985, when Avail introduced parts to race Ambassadeur)

Japan uses Baitfinesse (BF) to define the rod, usually those wide-range progressive rods aimed for bass and salt.  

 

Kurodai is black sea perch.  

It's a US thing to equate BFS to panfish and traditional USM UL spinning tackle, which are short para rods, and nothing could be more UnTrue.  

You can try to put BFS in your box, but it's not going to stay there.  

The history of threadline fishing is long progressive rods on big fish - salmon in Scotland, etc.