The rod is rated for 6-10lb line and 1/32-1/8oz and with my initial testing id say that its probably a little low on both ends.
Paired with the aldebaran 50hg the total weight for the combo was 7.8oz
Initial impressions:
A very clean simple build, cork was nice, guide alignment was straight, epoxy was how it should be. In other words a typical st croix. The rod weighs 3.1oz and with the aldebaran the balance point was right on the threads in front of the lock nut. Guides were full size titanium framed units and as a note all were single footed. It is a true moderate taper with the blank flexing in between 1/3 and 1/2 way down but the tip was very quick and responsive and was in no way noodle.
Fishing experience:
I only had about an hour to toy with it today before life got in the way but I got to a few different lures setups. The reel setup was stock aldebaran 50hg (untouched) with 10lb red label fluoro.
Casting:
The rod is a moderate taper but the tip was fast enough to run light jig setups. I ran both a 4.5g valleyhill finesse jig (no trailer) and a 1/16oz bullet weight with a 2 inch craw on a size 1 hook. The rod handled them nicely and the tip loaded well for both distance and hard casts and accuracy in short pitches.
On the extreme ends of weight, I went to my go to 1/16oz rooster tail and even though 10lb fluoro isn't the best for tiny baits i was getting casts of 50-60 feet on a dead calm day. This was further than I was expecting and is a testament to both the rod and reel. I didn't test any lower but judging by how it loaded at 1/16 id say 1/32 may be pushing it but I can't knock it till I try it. Top end I went up to a 1/4oz crankbait and this weight while doable, was pushing the rod a bit so I can say 3/16 is a happy top end for the rod.
Sensitivity:
YEP,very! I was fishing the local pond which has a bottom blanketed in thick leaves and I could literally feel the pattern of the leaves on the bottom with the t-rigged mini craw. I caught 4 tiny fish consisting of a 10 inch bass, an 8 inch crappie, a 4 inch green sunfish and a 2 inch brim, and i believe I could feel the fish thinking of biting before they did. Even the little brim felt like he smashed it lol. I have an avid ultralight spinning rod and while its sensitive this rod trumps it in spades. Spinner baits and crankbaits were easily decernable in their action and it was easy to feel if a piece of grass grabbed them.
Ergonomics:
I wasn't sure how the fuji sk2 seat would agree with me but with the reel in place it felt good and fit the aldebaran nicely with how I palm my reels. The 3.1oz rod and 4.7oz reel were an absolute joy to fish for the hour I got to do it. The cork was nice and felt good and the blue was pretty but id prefer a more subtle color ideally.
Overall:
Since these are on sale for $150 shipped I think they are an amazing value and a great bfs rod. I was told by another poster here that the rod was too slow for him but in my testing, as long as you stay in the rods happy weight zone, it can be a very capable bfs rig. The fish I caught were small but the hooksets flung all of them out of the water and sailing towards me so there is much more power in this rod compared to a true ultra light spinning outfit. I'll continue to test the rod and ill get to test some lower weights later this week when my ktf spool gets here.
I have a couple of BFS rods rated down to 1/32 and it seems to be a stretch for that even with super BFS reels. Sounds like you got a heck of a deal for it.
