The Top Five BFS Fishing Rods

By: FishUSA Staff

June 20, 2023

A BFS casting rod is a truly unique piece of equipment. When most people think casting rods, they're envisioning a rod with a fast action and heavy tip used for power fishing techniques. A BFS rod is none of the sort. The casting rods we'll highlight below were all built specifically to be used with lightweight reels, light line, and finesse baits. Each one of these rods excels at BFS fishing for bass, crappie, trout, or whatever else you may be targeting.

Best BFS Rods

St. Croix Mojo Bass Trigon Casting Rod

Shimano Zodias Casting Rod

Shimano Zodias Casting Rod

Cashion ICON Bait Finesse System Casting Rod

Dobyns Sierra Ultra Finesse Casting Rod

Conclusion

Best BFS Rods

St. Croix Mojo Bass Trigon Casting Rod

Buy The St. Croix Mojo Bass Trigon Rod

Model	Specifications
6'10" Medium Light, Moderate Fast	Lure Weight Rating: 1/8 - 7/16oz Line Weight Rating: 6 - 20lbs
7'1" Medium Light, Moderate Fast	Lure Weight Rating: 1/8 - 7/16oz Line Weight Rating: 6 - 20lbs

Features

The Mojo Bass Trigon series is new as of 2024.
St. Croix upgraded their extremely popular Mojo Bass line by adding:
1. Ergonomic TRIGON handle design
2. Premium SCIII carbon fiber blanks
3. Aluminum oxide guides with stainless steel frames
4. Agglomerated cork handles with premium EVA
5. St. Croix's proprietary new Dynamix reel seat
The 6'10" MLMF Trigon model was designed for lite treble hook baits such as small crankbaits, jerkbaits, and poppers
The moderate fast action allows the rod to properly load up so that small trebles aren't pulled out of the fish's mouth easily
The 7'1" MLMF Trigon model is very similar to its shorter counterpart, but the added length helps when throwing deeper diving finesse crankbaits

Shimano Expride B Casting Rod

Buy The Shimano Expride B Casting Rod

Model	Line Weight	Lure Weight
7'2" Medium Light, X-Fast action	7 - 14lbs	3/16 - 1/2oz

Features

The Shimano Expride B Casting Rod uses minimal materials for maximum gains
CI4+ reel seat, carbon monocoque handle, and Hi-Power X blank all make this rod as lightweight and sensitive as they come
Medium Light action allows for use of very light line and baits
X-Fast action is excellent for all types of BFS baits
7'2" length allows for long casts while also being short enough for accurate pitches

Shimano Zodias Casting Rod

Buy The Shimano Zodia Rod

Specification	Model ZDC70MLGA	Model ZDC72MLBFSA
Length	7' 0"	7' 2"
Power	Med. Light	Med. Light
Action	Moderate	Extra Fast
Line Weight	7 - 16 lbs.	7 - 14 lbs.
Lure Weight	3/16 - 3/4 oz.	3/16 - 1/2 oz.
Pieces	1	1
Blank Material	Hi-Power X + Glass	Hi-Power X

Features

The 7'0" ML Shimano Zodias is a Hi-Power X+ Glass blank
1. A glass composite allows a rod to have a very moderate action, allowing a fish to get a great hold of the bait before leaning into a hookset
2. This type of blank also helps keep fish pinned, especially those barely hooked with a treble
3. Rated to throw 3/16oz - 3/4oz lures on 7 - 16lb line
The 7'2" ML Zodias is a BFS Fishing machine
1. Incredibly lightweight
2. Hi-Power X blank wrapped with carbon tape allows for maximum sensitivity
3. 7'2" length allows for long casts with lures as light as 3/16oz

Cashion ICON Bait Finesse System Casting Rod

Buy The Cashion ICON BFS Casting Rod

Specifications
Model	iBFS610MLF	iBFS7LF
Length	6' 10"	7' 0"
Power	Med. Light	Light
Action	Fast	Fast
Line Weight	4 - 10 lbs.	2 - 8 lbs.
Lure Weight	1/8 - 7/16 oz.	1/16 - 5/16 oz.
Pieces	1	1
Type	Soft Baits	Hard Baits

Features

The Cashion Icon Bait Finesse System Casting Rod is a newer rod to the BFS market, but Cashion is no stranger to making lightweight, sensitive, and well-balanced rods
Designed specifically for ultra light finesse fishing with casting gear
Micro guides enhance accuaracy when making short pitches and flips
Cashion's hand-rolled CR6r blank brings unmatched sensitivty to BFS rods
Ergonomic reel seat for all day casting comfort

Dobyns Sierra Ultra Finesse Rod

Buy The Dobyns Sierra Ultra Finesse Rod

Model	Length	Power	Action	Line Weight	Lure Weight	Pieces	Type
SUF650C	6' 5"	Light	Moderate	2 - 8 lbs.	1/16 - 5/16 oz.	1	Ultra-Finesse Casting
SUF690C	6' 9"	Light	Moderate	2 - 8 lbs.	1/16 - 5/16 oz.	1	Ultra-Finesse Casting
SUF691C	6' 9"	Light	Fast	2 - 8 lbs.	1/16 - 5/16 oz.	1	Ultra-Finesse Casting
SUF700C	7' 0"	Light	X-Fast	2 - 8 lbs.	1/16 - 5/16 oz.	1	Ultra-Finesse Casting
SUF701C	7' 0"	Light	Fast	2 - 8 lbs.	1/16 - 5/16 oz.	1	Ultra-Finesse Casting
SUF740C	7' 4"	Light	X-Fast	2 - 8 lbs.	1/16 - 5/16 oz.	1	Ultra-Finesse Casting

Features

The Dobyns Sierra Ultra Finesse Casting Rod Series was designed specifically for Bait Finesse Fishing with extremely light baits
1. 1/16oz - 5/16oz
High modulus graphite blanks for supreme sensitivity
Fuji micro guides and reel seats to stay lightweight
Portugal cork split handle design
Solid carbon tip sections
A variety of lengths, powers, and actions to excel at many BFS techniques secures this rod a #1 spot on the list

Conclusion

BFS is only continuing to grow in popularity, and as it does so will the technology involved in it. These are just a few of the excellent BFS rod options available at FishUSA.com, you can find many more in our casting rods section. If you're interested in looking into some casting reels to complete your BFS Fishing setup, check out our article "The Top Five BFS Casting Reels". To learn more about BFS in general and get a complete guide on everything you'll need to know to get started, check out "BFS Fishing - A Complete Guide to Bait Finesse System". We hope this article helps you put some fish in the net with your next BFS Fishing rod!