Don’t need a new rig but I want one!

[BrianMDTX]

I know there are some here with 30+ rigs. I have 6 baitcasting rigs and three spinning rigs and that pretty much covers everything from frogs to jigs to finesse. I do NOT need another rod and reel. But I want one lol. 
 

I love fishing with my baitcasting rigs, as I find it more comfortable over a day’s fishing, but a lot of the waters I fish tend to be most productive with weightless soft plastics. Which aren’t the greatest with such light baits unless it’s a heavier soft plastic like a Fat IKA, Neko Macho, etc. Do I need a BFS rig for weightless baits like a Zoom Trick or are there standard baitcasters that are suitable for such light baits? 

[TnRiver46]

You can throw a trick worm on about any baitcaster with no weight, just don’t overpower it or throw into the wind 

[Mike L]

Some say you’re more efficient using a BFS rig but that’s not my experience at all. 
You can be as effective using a standard bait caster and that includes the entire finesse line up as long as you consider the entire package and selective in your equipment, presentations and overall conditions which you would do anyway. 
 

I throw a weightless stick bait, small poppers, flukes etc. with no reservations. The only caveat being I’m more selective in the overall combo and where and how I use it 
 

 

 

 

Mike

[MickD]

I have started down the BFS rabbit hole, and it looks like it's going to be both fun and effective.  The Ark Gravity reel only costs $150 and handles 1/8 oz like a piece of cake, so I'm sure it can go lighter.  The rod needs to be a light powered rod that will load with lighter lures.  I have built a ML 7 '-2" rod on a walleye spin blank and a 6 ' rod on an UL inland popping blank.  Both cast well with the shorter, lighter rod being a little more handy to use.  I don't know yet whether it will handle a big smallie or not.  I suggest if you're looking for something new in the lighter lure area you consider BFS.  It doesn't have to cost a fortune and it's looking like a lot of fun.   The rods have ERN's of 12 and 8 respectively.  12 is a little high IMO.   Not all "regular" casting reels will do well at 1/8 oz and lower. 

[Craig P]

I don’t think anyone “needs” a BFS setup while chasing bass if you use spinning setups. I know for me, I much prefer a casting setup for chasing bass so the BFS bug has bitten me.  I’m not going to lie, it’s fun and I enjoy it more than spinning. 

[IYAOYAS]

I'm going to be picking up a BFS setup when I get to it. I'm going to go the Abu Garcia route with a Revo X BFS and the Veritas BFS rod. Should make for e decent little setup for less than 300 bucks.

 

[king fisher]

I live in Mexico where BFS stands for Bad fishing system.  I'm not sure if it is even legal to use BFS south of the border, but the Monkey tries to get me to buy a BFS set up anyway.  He is always talking about how great one would work on my old stomping grounds walking the bank in WA.    It's not what you need, but what you want that makes the world go around.  Go ahead and buy one, use it and have fun with it.  Just don't bring it south of the boarder.

[casts_by_fly]

I don't have any trick worms here to check, but an old post here on BR says they are about a titch under a quarter ounce.  Add a hook and you're right at a quarter.  That's not a problem for a non-BFS rod and reel, but you need to have a setup that's light enough to do it which includes the line.  I think you have the 7' all around fast Lowrider.  I don't have that one, but I have the 7' all around bucoo and the 7'2" swim jig (fast).  Both would do it but are slightly on the higher power side of what I would want if I were picking a new rod.  However, something like the finesse jig or even the weightless worm rod with 10-12# thin mono would work great, especially with a shallower spool like an MGL or SV. You'll want a rod that ideally has a 1/8 or 3/16 lower end weight rating.

 

If you want to start to verge on the BFS arena but not jump in with both feet, the Phenix feather ML is a 7'1" ML/F rated 1/4-5/8 but it will throw an eighth ounce with a BFS reel.  I fished it the past two years with neds and similar which are around the same weight you're talking.  Then for this year I picked up the new Falcon BFS 7'2" which I'm pretty sure has the same blank as the cara spinning rod of the same specs.  I haven't fished it yet, but compared to the Phenix the tip is lighter yet (but has more power in the mid and butt) so I'm confident that it will throw and fish a true 1/8th ounce with a BFS reel (and I can cast it decently well with a pure 16th ounce).  I haven't put a standard reel on it yet, but a quarter ounce on an MGL spool with light mono should be no problem.  Can't wait to fish it.

[Eric 26]

I’m not sure if you read the Okuma Hakai post but I’m going to suggest looking into one for your needs if you’re not looking for a bfs reel. If you’re comfortable with an off brand reel I can share the details in a pm and I just checked A/E and they’re offering it for $95.00 currently. I’m not going to say for certain but I’ve posted before on having luck with a local guy fixing a Piscifun reel for me after I ordered a part from Ardent which is what my Piscifun is a clone of which one of these days id love to hear if anyone else such as @Bigbox99 has had any experience with finding parts. 

[BrianMDTX]

I have a MF rod that IMO feel more like a MMF, but the reel is spooled with 10 lb. Big Game mono. Might be worth a try respooling it with lighter line. 

[928JLH]

For a reel check out the Daiwa Alphas SV TW 800 on Digitaka.  If I recall it's about 170. Should work great for plastics.

[Derek1]

I think weightless plastics is definitely more about the rod than the reel. I like a medium power rod, for most of your average weightless plastics that take a 3/0 hook. I would imagine just about any modern reel will do fine. If your just planning on throwing the regular plastics you already use. 

[Lead Head]

I'm going to suggest a 21 Zillion. It will almost definitely cast what you are describing very well. Best of all, it takes a 34mm spool so if you want it to cast super light stuff you can grab a aftermarket bfs spool for it. There are a lot of options. If you decide you don't like the bfs thing the worst case scenario is you have a Zillion for something else...