Cheap local BFS rod alternatives
Posted: Fri Mar 30, 2018 5:56 pm
I got into BFS recently, and got a used pixy off ebay, which I recently upgraded with ceramic bearings,and a diy spool. I figured I
would share my experience with some rods I have found local and work loading and casting light baits. Who knows,maybe someone could use one of these cheaper rods,as a backup,or to have something while waiting on a more expensive rod to ship from overseas.
At my local walmart I looked for any casting rod that could remotely, possibly load light baits. Most of everything is medium and heavier,but I saw a 10$ zebco slingshot spincast combo rated medium light. I figured yeah,10$ is worth a try. The rod is 2 pieces, 5'6", has a decent bend to it,and can handle 1/16-3/4 oz lures. I had no problems casting my crude custom spinner baits I make, that are between 2.6-3 grams with it. I haven't cast with this rod since upgrading with the bearings and diy spool though. It may cast even better. I would think of the rod as something better suited to handle bass than trout,as it is a bit beefier,and handle a bit heavier lures. While fishing with this I did notice the rod sections did move around a little,so I just glued the rod together with gorilla glue. 5'6 is not too long to fit in the car. I have not landed anything really big or heavy with this rod yet. Just small bass,a small bluegill,some small chain pickerel,and a number of crappies. I don't get as much fish in the winter months.
If someone is into shorter rods for trout,like those expensive JDM ones,look no further than the Shakespeare micro series 4'6" spincast combo! I have never handled those expensive JDM rods before,and I can't compare their actions and handling to this pole personally. I can confirm that this pole casts and loads really light lures nicely,so long as your reel can handle them! The pole doesn't have a lure weight listed on the blank,but it easily handles 1/32,and a bit under. Yesterday I tested out my pixy on the spinning version of this same rod,because I already had a few of them on hand. The rod blanks on the casting and spinning version are pretty much the same. I had fun casting tiny crank baits,some tiny homemade spoons,and homemade top water baits. I tried throwing around a trout magnet,but kind of struggled with it being so light(or it could be my lack of skill with bait casting reels). I didn't really land anything on this setup,except for a small bluegill that grabbed my tiny crank bait's treble hook and fell off as I got it out of the water. I landed them on the fly rod mostly that night. They didn't seem to want cooperate with faster moving lures vs flies. Earlier today I went to the store and picked up the spincast version of the combo,so I now have the correct rod with the right reel seat and line guides for my pixy. The combo runs around 17$ + change,and is very common to find,at many stores. I got mine at walmart. I have landed numerous fish on the spinning rod version,with spinning reels,over years. All kinds of sunfish,crappies,perch(yellow,and white),bass up over 1lbs,pickerel;big and small. You don't have control over what size fish is going to grab small lures you decide to throw,especially in a river with a number of different species. I don't see the casting version of this pole performing any differently than the spinning version.
I noticed while searching on amazon,that there are some BFS rod offerings on there,that are not located over seas. I ordered a johncoo 5'6" UL casting rod for 35$,and it's a decent rod. It's 2 piece,and extremely light! I have only landed a few small pickerel on it. The action is less noodle whippy,so to speak,but still handles 1/16,and a little less weight ok,as well as heavier stuff. It's rated 0.6-6 grams. There's no problem bombing SK bitsy pond minnows with it. I haven't really landed a whole lot on it,and will test it more once the fish start waking up. I really hope more BFS rod manufacturers,start selling their products on amazon,or other places inside the US,so it would be easier for us to get our hands on them. It would be awesome to find kuying tetons,more rosewood stuff,dagger royal spirit rods,ect. on amazon.
Anyways,this is my first post on here,and I really just wanted to share my experience with these rods I found useful for BFS. I'm not being paid by any company to promote these products. I hope my experience can help someone new,getting into BFS,looking for a cheap rod that would work for them.
would share my experience with some rods I have found local and work loading and casting light baits. Who knows,maybe someone could use one of these cheaper rods,as a backup,or to have something while waiting on a more expensive rod to ship from overseas.
At my local walmart I looked for any casting rod that could remotely, possibly load light baits. Most of everything is medium and heavier,but I saw a 10$ zebco slingshot spincast combo rated medium light. I figured yeah,10$ is worth a try. The rod is 2 pieces, 5'6", has a decent bend to it,and can handle 1/16-3/4 oz lures. I had no problems casting my crude custom spinner baits I make, that are between 2.6-3 grams with it. I haven't cast with this rod since upgrading with the bearings and diy spool though. It may cast even better. I would think of the rod as something better suited to handle bass than trout,as it is a bit beefier,and handle a bit heavier lures. While fishing with this I did notice the rod sections did move around a little,so I just glued the rod together with gorilla glue. 5'6 is not too long to fit in the car. I have not landed anything really big or heavy with this rod yet. Just small bass,a small bluegill,some small chain pickerel,and a number of crappies. I don't get as much fish in the winter months.
If someone is into shorter rods for trout,like those expensive JDM ones,look no further than the Shakespeare micro series 4'6" spincast combo! I have never handled those expensive JDM rods before,and I can't compare their actions and handling to this pole personally. I can confirm that this pole casts and loads really light lures nicely,so long as your reel can handle them! The pole doesn't have a lure weight listed on the blank,but it easily handles 1/32,and a bit under. Yesterday I tested out my pixy on the spinning version of this same rod,because I already had a few of them on hand. The rod blanks on the casting and spinning version are pretty much the same. I had fun casting tiny crank baits,some tiny homemade spoons,and homemade top water baits. I tried throwing around a trout magnet,but kind of struggled with it being so light(or it could be my lack of skill with bait casting reels). I didn't really land anything on this setup,except for a small bluegill that grabbed my tiny crank bait's treble hook and fell off as I got it out of the water. I landed them on the fly rod mostly that night. They didn't seem to want cooperate with faster moving lures vs flies. Earlier today I went to the store and picked up the spincast version of the combo,so I now have the correct rod with the right reel seat and line guides for my pixy. The combo runs around 17$ + change,and is very common to find,at many stores. I got mine at walmart. I have landed numerous fish on the spinning rod version,with spinning reels,over years. All kinds of sunfish,crappies,perch(yellow,and white),bass up over 1lbs,pickerel;big and small. You don't have control over what size fish is going to grab small lures you decide to throw,especially in a river with a number of different species. I don't see the casting version of this pole performing any differently than the spinning version.
I noticed while searching on amazon,that there are some BFS rod offerings on there,that are not located over seas. I ordered a johncoo 5'6" UL casting rod for 35$,and it's a decent rod. It's 2 piece,and extremely light! I have only landed a few small pickerel on it. The action is less noodle whippy,so to speak,but still handles 1/16,and a little less weight ok,as well as heavier stuff. It's rated 0.6-6 grams. There's no problem bombing SK bitsy pond minnows with it. I haven't really landed a whole lot on it,and will test it more once the fish start waking up. I really hope more BFS rod manufacturers,start selling their products on amazon,or other places inside the US,so it would be easier for us to get our hands on them. It would be awesome to find kuying tetons,more rosewood stuff,dagger royal spirit rods,ect. on amazon.
Anyways,this is my first post on here,and I really just wanted to share my experience with these rods I found useful for BFS. I'm not being paid by any company to promote these products. I hope my experience can help someone new,getting into BFS,looking for a cheap rod that would work for them.