🔥🤘SHIMANO CURADO BFS TEARDOWN + MOAR BEARINGS 🐻!!!

Hey guys!
In this video we'll be tearing down a Shimano Curado BFS. During the teardown, I'll show you where you can replace the bushings to bring the bearing count up to a 10+1 reel.
If you’re interested in checking out a video that goes over more modifications and upgrades to the Curado BFS go check out this video from the ‪@The_Multi-species_Angler‬
• The Shimano Curado BFS...
PS BEFORE YOU CONSIDER BUYING BEARINGS!!! Read the pinned comment in the comments section below. Josh Allen shared an ingenious cost saving measure that helps you take care of two mods for the price of one!!!
IF you still want to upgrade the bushings, the bearing sizes that you will need are 4mm x 7mm x 2.5mm and you will need 3 of them; 2 for the handle knobs, and 1 for the worm gear. You can source whatever bearings you like but I have really enjoyed using the RORO BFS bearings. Look for the 742BFS bearings.
Non-affiliate Links:
rorolure.com/collections/spoo...
baitfinesseempire.com/product...
Affiliate links are below. If you use them I will receive a small commission with your purchase and am extremely grateful to you if you do.
SHIMANO CURADO BFS
amzn.to/3IgDSwF
SHIMANO SLX BFS
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CHAPTERS:
0:00 - 00:28 Oh Hai
00:29 - 07:35 7 Minutes about Handle Knobs...
07:36 - 27:27 Stuff to learn!
27:28 - 28:17 Endtroduction
#shimano #fishing #curado #bfsfishing #baitfinessesystem #kastking #soloking #bassfishing #troutfishing #bass #fishinggear #trout #panfish #daiwa #abugarcia #lews #okuma

[@JLA1911A1]

Excellent video Brother! Pro tip for guys keeping their reels. Upgrade the reel handle to something carbon fiber to cut weight that already has bearings top and bottom of the knob shafts. And use the stock bearings from your stock reel handle to upgrade the worm gear bushing to a bearing. I upgraded my reel handles on all 3 of my Curado BFS reels to spool speed 110mm CF handles with XCR hybrid ceramic bearings and I used those stock bearings to upgrade those bushings in the reels. Its a win win that way. And I love the way these small reels fish with a longer light weight handle.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey Josh! You know that’s pretty ingenious! Saves you a bit of cash on the bearing area haha. Thanks for sharing that tip!!! Haha man seriously kinda laughing at myself at how simple and effective it is and I didn’t even stop to think about that lol… I think this is why I like conversing with you guys so much. To me the channel is something I want to build into a community where we share information and can just chat about anything bfs or fishing related. I’m gonna pin your tip/comment as it’s so good! Thanks again Josh and cheers!!! 🙌🙌🙌

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Josh! I’ve pinned your comment and mentioned for people to take a look in the video description. Thank you again for sharing your tip! Seriously awesome!!! 🙌🙌🙌

[@JLA1911A1]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL Sweet! Im happy to help when I can sir.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@JLA1911A1 much appreciated! Many kudos to you for sharing your insight and knowledge! Cheers my friend! 🙌🙌🙌

[@remoravictim]

lol this guy reels... great tip! I have this reel and will be following the video and your tip for the upgrades.

[@hookalounge]

Narrorate my life, great voice, great lighting, clear quality video as always. Keep it up!!

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Ahahaha I got a really good chuckle out of that 😆. I really appreciate the kind words, the support and really for helping to make this channel a community! Cheers my friend! 🙌🙌🙌

[@jayludvigh6958]

Another excellent teardown video. It lets me know that replacing the level wind bushings on my Scorpion BFS would be more effort , for me, than I would want to invest. Much appreciated!

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey Jay! Your are correct. Replacing the worm gear bushing is a bit on the involved side of things. Imho, it is worth it but like you said it does take quite a bit of effort to do so. Thanks for the comment and I hope you are well! Cheers my friend!

[@eckharttolle-nq7qu]

❤Those RORO bearing you're recommending are $ 170 😮

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey eckhart! $170? That seems like a bit much. Iirc they were around $9 each? Maybe check the currency that the website you are looking at is listing the price in? It could be an error maybe? Cheers my friend!

[@tmzzlo]

Just to let you know that all daiwa and shimano reels using the same size bearings in a knobs only abu garcia and probably some other less known brands using different size bearings. One more thing, too much greece in a knob is absolutely fine, it will prevent water getting in to it and the knobs don't have to spin like crazy(all people think that it should :D ), they just have to spin freely without any resistance when you using reel.I will repeat i am talking about knobs :D the other parts really have to spin like 'crazy' :D. Nice vid and have a nice day :D

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey there! I appreciate the info! I’m just very… excess grease averse haha. If I were to use the reel for salt water fishing I would definitely keep as much of it there as possible but even then only really a thin coat is needed to keep the metal surfaces away from the salt water. My theory is that the reel was heavily overgreased because Shimano thinks that most Americans do not service their reels and probably treat their reels poorly. Whether that’s true or not I have no idea… in any case thank you for sharing that info and cheers!

[@christopherlee4613]

Cool bro.👍🏻

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Thanks Chris!!! Cheers my friend!

[@rawrfishing]

next up... spool upgrades!

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Haha sadly no… my adventures with the Curado have come and gone. It’s been returned lol. Didn’t really feel like it had a place in my current arsenal and I really need to downsize soon. Far too much stuff that I’m not using currently 😅. I think you and themultispeciesangler have covered spools as well? If so, I’m more than happy to send folks looking for spool reviews over to you guys 🙌🙌🙌. Cheers Jimmy!!!

[@baraya_mancing]

mantap reelnya Bosque 👍

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hi there! Unfortunately google translate isn’t able to fully translate what you said but I do agree that the reel is a great reel. Thanks so much for commenting with you opinions! Cheers!

[@thefeverfishing]

🔥

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

So much fire Troy!!!

[@MrNoMDI]

Hi Peter ! 👋 Interesting video! With the exception of the spool shaft bearings, for which hybrid ceramic bearings are the most suitable (BFS only), I use full stainless steel bearings because they are much smoother. I have very good results with the Japanese NMB bearings which are also affordable...😉

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hi Herve!!! I greatly appreciate your insight and opinion my friend. I also believe that hybrid ceramics are probably the best for freshwater bfs applications in terms of bearing upgrades. The only experience I have with NMB bearings are the ones that come stock on many of the CDM BFS reels nowadays. I do agree that they are smooth and quiet but just don’t spin for nearly as long as hybrid ceramics. Although you really do not need the most free spinning bearings for the vast majority of the reel. In any case thank you as always for sharing and I hope all is well with you!!! Cheers my friend!!!

[@MrNoMDI]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL I completely agree Peter 😉. For regular casting reels i’ve done some comparisons between expensive hybrid ceramic bearing (BOCA for spool bearings only) with NMB and i noticed no casting distance difference… So i use NMB everywhere except for bfs spool bearings…moreover the NMB bearings seem to resist perfectly to sea water.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@MrNoMDI hi Herve! Yea for the most part the rest of the reel bearings don’t have much, if any, impact on casting distance so really the only bearings that should be the most free spinning are spool bearings, and potentially spool tension knob bearings. Normally I’d love to have more of a conversation with you but I am just starting to get sick again… and don’t have much energy and am having a bit of difficulty concentrating haha. Sorry my friend I hate being sick… I hope you are well and cheers!

[@MrNoMDI]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL Sorry to hear that … Get well soon my friend 👍

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Thank you Herve hehe. It is what it is… hopefully this will pass by soon 😅😅😅

[@timothythompson6549]

About the cupped washers under the star drag, the drag will still work if you have them nested together. But, the drag adjustment will be less progressive than it would otherwise. That is, every degree of rotation will make a bigger change to the drag. Shimano Tranx 300 & 400 actually don't have those washers at all. I don't know why Shimano uses so much thread locker on those side plate screws. They're always hard to get out. I wish they'd use the lower strength purple thread locker.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey Timothy! Thank you for sharing your insight! Thinking about it it makes sense that the spring washers would provide a much more exponential drag adjustment if the two washers are in the same orientation. Thank you for sharing that! Also, touching on the thread locker for the side plate screws… you know… I’m not quite sure but it could depend on the material that the screw is going into? Typically, when the screws are for carbon or graphite the screws will have a larger thread pitch and bite into the carbon. My guess is that those screws are less susceptible to backing out under use. However, with metal ones I believe they may be as the pitch is fined? I don’t know I’m just purely guessing here on this. Also, I wonder if the thread locker can act as a seal to help combat corrosion? I’m not sure… just hypothesis that can probably be googled I’m sure haha 😅. Anyhow, thanks you for bringing points up that I was not able to cover! Much appreciated! Would be amazing if someone more knowledgeable on these subjects could chime in. Anyhow, cheers my friend!

[@timothythompson6549]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL generally fine thread screws are going into metal, coarse thread screws go into composite. Maybe screws are less prone to backing out of composite material? When I've seen thread locker on Shimano screws it's been the blue type. Loctite makes a purple variety that isn't as strong. I can't see those screws needing THAT much strength to keep them from backing out. About the washers, changing their orientation won't make any difference to max drag pressure. It just changes how progressive adjustments are. It can be advantageous to do it that way. If you're using a lure with thick wire hooks that needs a lot of drag pressure to set you can very quickly make a big reduction in drag pressure if needed. Not necessarily an advantage for BFS fishing, but something to be aware of. I learned about that from Tackle Advisors videos.

[@danishdaniel785]

Guessing from ur review, aldebaran and curado bfs had same type of drag clicker, i wonder which one sounds better, could you make short video side by side sound comparison? Im still doubt that the extra bucks on the aldebaran is worth it tho

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey Daniel! To be completely honest, I don’t quite remember what the Curado sounds like as I returned it not long after my review. Imho, the Aldebaran(especially now) is a better purchase than the Curado. However, if you don’t want to spend the same amount of money as what an Aldebaran is going for you can get similar levels of casting performance with much cheaper reels if you’re willing to consider CDM reels. If you haven’t already check out the Haibo Arise Air videos. I really like that reel for its price. Better specs than the low level Japanese branded reels but much less money. Cheers my friend!

[@silentcustard6612]

I’ve tried to clean my reel out again but now I have another issue. Everything appears to be in working order, but the drag is much quieter than it was before. I checked the pin before I seated everything in, but now it sounds like it’s muffled. Any idea what could cause that?

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey silent! Hm… first off let’s identify which clicker is quieter. Is it when you turn your star drag or when the spool is being pulled out under drag? Let me know and we can keep troubleshooting from there. Cheers my friend!

[@jnorman975]

Any shot you could do a video on taking apart the side plate assembly? I took mine completely apart and now can't get the brake holder to stay in place. Not sure where I went wrong. Can't find anything on the internet about a full breakdown on this reel

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey Jon! Unfortunately I actually returned this reel. That being said I think the reason you’re not able to get the plate to go back is due to the small pins you need to align. If you notice there are alignment pins from the brake assembly and line up with this plate but also each brake shoe has pins that need to fit into the brake plate cover. I think that that’s what you’re referring to? Lmk if this isn’t what you’re referring to. Cheers!

[@jnorman975]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL that wasn't it. I got it figured out. There is a little peg on one of the brake holder legs that has to ride along a groove on brake dial. All good now

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@jnorman975 nice!!! Glad you were able to get it figured out. Cheers buddy!

[@silentcustard6612]

Amazing video, but now I have a problem with my reel. Disassembled it to grease it, and now the drag star won’t click into place. I’ve aligned it with the nut and gotten it where it looks in place, but the drag no longer engages and the spool spins freely. Any idea what the issue could be?

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey silent! Hm… my gut tells me you might have a part backwards inside the main gear housing. I wonder if either you have the antireverse ratchet or the antireverse bearing inserted backwards? If that’s not the case then it’s possible that your two spring washers were not put back in opposing each other or… the drag star spring may be inserted backwards? Sorry it’s hard to tell you exactly what the issue might be without seeing everything in person… Hope this gives you a good place to start at least though! Cheers!

[@silentcustard6612]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL I was able to fix it! The drag clicker had popped out of place, which I believe pushed everything a little bit out of an alignment. Along with that, the spring that is compressed by the star was bunched in a weird way. Everything now works great and feels great. Thank you!

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@silentcustard6612 hey silent! Yes!!!!!! 🙌🙌🙌 thanks for sharing that you were able to fix the issue. Super stoked for you my friend! Cheers!

[@azizulhaqqim8855]

Hi. Im using curado bfs. Since curado bfs xg is ratio 8, and i want to use ratio 6, what bfs reel form shimano can be using at curado bfs xg? Is that scorpion bfs or slx bfs? Thank

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey Azizul! I responded to your question in your first comment but check out the slx bfs main gear and pinion! Cheers!

[@bubblebreeze1635]

I think my Metanium shallow spool was greased like this Curado BFS. I ordered the metanium and thought well I guess this is how they're supposed to feel. Then a week later I received a 22 Bantam and it's almost night and day how smooth the Bantam is. I'll either do a tear down to clean the grease or use it to wear in the grease.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey there bubble breeze! Hm… that’s really odd. I wonder if it has to do with where the reels are being produced, ie what factory? I’m not sure but maybe you can check to see where your two reels are made. I bet they’re made in different factories 🤷‍♂️. Imho, if I were to keep a reel that was heavily overgreased I’d tear it down, clean it well and then relube with my oil and grease/s of choice. I get that it can be a bit of a pain but imho it’s well worth it. That being said, it’s not like your reels are going to fall apart so it’s not necessary in the least. How are you liking the metanium shallow spool? I’ve been a bit curious about that as it seems semi-BFSish? Anywho, thanks for sharing and cheers!!!

[@bubblebreeze1635]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL yeah I'll probably tear it down before the spring. I'm really liking the shallow spool edition so far. I thought it would just come with a shallow spool and aluminum gears but I was pleased to see a cosmetic difference too. It's very stealthy with the lettering and a darker color than the regular metaniums. I'm not too worried about the aluminum gears because I use light line and I don't tighten the drag all the way.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@bubblebreeze1635 that’s awesome to hear! I was and am still a bit confused as to the positioning of the metanium shallow spool but im definitely not worried about any of shimano’s alum gears. I know people really prefer brass but it’s very heavy and really I haven’t had any issues with my aldebarans alum gears or any of the Chinese reels that use alum gears as well. Heck Shimano even went as far as to port the aldebaran’s alum main gear which tells me that their confident the gear itself won’t implode haha. The durability of the teeth is yet to be seen but as the reel gets used more and more some of that wear should actually make the gear feels smoother haha. I could go on and on about how people are so demanding of certain reel specs but then they want new features left and right and how they want reels to last forever but then there’s a weird consumer urge to want a newer “better” version of the same reel the next time it gets updated and then the former reel sits unused or gets sold. Haha sorry when I rant I can rant with the best of them 😆. I’m gonna stop myself here before I write an essay 😂. Let me know what you decide on doing with the degreasing and cheers!

[@bubblebreeze1635]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL I wonder if the metanium shallow spool was to bring shallow spools to the casting reels to pair with the spinning reels that have long stroke shallow spools. Or if it was to be a counter to the alphas 800s. I hope they bring more options for shallow spool casting reels. Besides for the finesse benefits I like them because they do away with the need for backing.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey! Yea I really do like the availability of shallow spool reels. Not many of us absolutely need to fully fill up our spools anyhow. What might be kind of cool is if the jdm brands started offering different spool options ie shallow medium deep or something along those lines. I know aftermarket companies already do this and to some degree SLP works does this for daiwa but if they were already designed and presumably tuned for the reel by the manufacturer how cool would that be. Special “bfs tuned” or “shallow spool” editions like the metanium would be a good way for reel manufacturers to broaden their product line without, seemingly, needing to do too much more work or tooling at the factories. Just my thoughts… maybe I think too much 😆. Cheers buddy!

[@JoaoVitor-gm8xo]

Hey friend, I love ve2, worth it buy acura ?

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey joão! Very nice to meet you. Imho, the Acura is a great reel and is capable of casting lighter lures than the ve2. It will perform even better if you upgrade the bearings to ceramics but isn’t 100% necessary. The main different you’ll find between the Acura and ve2 are backlashes. The Acura YOU will have to cast with more control as it will have more opportunities to backlash on you. The ve2 brakes are quite strong and so it makes casting almost backlash free. The Acura will backlash more but it will allow you to cast lower weights and can help you develop better thumb control where as this isn’t needed as much with the ve2. I would say the ve2 is a great beginner reel and that the Acura is a great intermediate to advanced user reel. I hope that makes sense and helps you make a decision with your purchase! Let me know if you have more questions and cheers!

[@The_Multi-species_Angler]

Remove magnets less breaking so you can wreck more lol 😆 there is a bearing inside the spool tension. Man you should have kept it. Sold the Aldebaran 22 joking joking.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Haha bearings in the right places! I think if the main gear didn’t have the anti corrosion coating I’d be a bit more inclined to keep it and try supertuning it to make it a bit smoother. Ah well… there are so many other reels to look at that it’s not that big of a deal. Cheers my friend!

[@The_Multi-species_Angler]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL sell* the Aldebaran

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@The_Multi-species_Angler haha never!!! Well… maybe one day… 😅😅😅

[@mikeoutdoors22]

You may stop making videos man, I keep spending money or take things apart when you upload a new video 🤣🤣🤣. Brilliant video as always.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hahaha you guys always manage to make me laugh 😆. I am sorry but… not sorry? 😂. Jokes aside, I really appreciate the kind words and support. I’m hoping that as the channel grows that people can come and find a place where they can chime in and ask questions and everyone can help out. Thanks again friend and cheers!!! 🙌🙌🙌

[@mikeoutdoors22]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL your building a great channel and us as fans appreciate it. Love Reading all the comments. Always learn lots here. Loo forward to the next one 🎣🎣🎣

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@mikeoutdoors22 honestly I am pretty blown away by the amazing people commenting and really the support for the channel. I see the channel as being just a platform to provide people with information and how to guides but it’s still mind blowing at how much the videos have resonated with everyone. Needless to say I am very humbled by all of this and also extremely thankful as well. Will do my best to continue to provide people with good information and insight but also share what people have to add as I am no expert by any means. I really love what you’re doing with your channel as well and would love to give you a shout out in the future, with your permission ofc. The more BFS videos are out the the better imho! Thanks again… truly… for the kind words and encouragement. Cheers my friend! 🙌🙌🙌

[@mikeoutdoors22]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL No problem man its great to see such good content out there for all of us getting into and love bfs now. Appreciate the support on my channel to buddy and of course you can give a shout out to my channel anytime. Tight lines buddy 🎣🎣

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

The feeling is definitely mutual my friend! I’ll give you a shout out soon and until then keep up the good work! Cheers 🍻!!!

[@JoaoVitor-gm8xo]

My friend, worth buy a curado bfs ? I have a valiant Eagle 2

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hello João! I think that question isn’t for me to answer. It is hard to say because I don’t know what you value. For me, the answer is currently a no. I will return my Curado bfs because I have no need for one. There are many pros and cons but the cons are too many compared to the pros as I have many other reels that do the pros of the Curado better. Maybe the ultimate deciding factor is the price. Are you ok with spending $200? I know I did not answer your question but that is because everyone has different needs. I’m sorry that might not help but if you have other questions I’d love to help out! Cheers my friend!

[@JoaoVitor-gm8xo]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL what reels do better ? 200us is my max budget

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@JoaoVitor-gm8xo hey João! That’s a good question and odd budget price because there’s not many reels in that price range other than the Curado/slx/scorpion bfs, and the kestrel elite. I would honestly save your money until you can go for something in the $300 range. You can also consider bfs tuning something like a daiwa tatula 70, 80 or 100. I don’t think they’ll really be able to cast down to 1g very well but I tuned by 100HSL a couple years ago and it’s surprised me how well it casts 2.5-3.5g lures with a bfs spool. Sorry it might not be the answer you want but if you really want to spend $200 on a new reel I think saving a little more until you get to around $300 is a better upgrade. The ve2 will suit you fine or if you need another reel look at the Soloking Acura or Tsurinoya Genius for around $70. Hope that helps! Cheers!

[@JoaoVitor-gm8xo]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL And alphas air tw ? I can buy one ?

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@JoaoVitor-gm8xo hey joão if you can find an alphas air sv tw for around $200 I think that is a good buy. I don’t have direct experience with the reel but it does not come with a drag clicker from my understanding and can probably use a spool upgrade if you plan on casting light lures. Hope that helps!

[@vin18m]

Great video as always. I’m so tempted to buy an SLX BFS and upgrade it, they are going so cheap nowadays. This video didn’t help…

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Hey Vince! I think the SLX BFS is definitely the right price point imho. If I were to keep one of these reels my choice would be that, upgrade the bearings and get into either the avail or roro spool and call it a day. Probably not exactly budget per say but itd be a Shimano and very versatile between the two spools. I think the last time I checked the dollar was gaining some strength over the yen again but it’s not nearly as strong as it was last year sadly… if you do get into one go check out themultispeciesanglers videos. I think he said he was going to release a SLX specific upgrade video sometime if not already. Lmk what you end up doing and cheers!!!

[@vin18m]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL all very good ideas, maybe not for someone who already has a 16 and 22 Aldebaran though 😂. Lack of fishing = more time online with the credit card unfortunately!

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

@@vin18m hahaha touché that is the very reason my Curado is headed back to the store =\. The Aldebaran fills the Shimano bfs niche quite nicely and it looks like you’ve got two!!! Haha to be honest though… the value you get out of this reel is surpassed by CDM reels and if you’re going for the buttery smooth goodness that is high end jdm then the Aldebaran would suit you much better. So… then that really leaves the question… are you looking for a workhorse reel that can kind of do it all in the bfs world and don’t care about price? If so, then these reels are the right fit for you. Imho I’d wait for a refresh as these are a bit long in the tooth and due for an upgrade in Japan soonish. There! I saved you so money! Haha 🙌🙌🙌 😆 if you buy one though I won’t get mad. I promise. 😆 cheers Vince!!!

[@vin18m]

@@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL I was actually thinking I could justify getting this reel for saltwater use. And I like the idea of it being cheaper as it’ll tend to get beaten around a bit more in the salt. I know the 22 Aldebaran is supposed to be saltwater safe, but I just can’t bring myself to expose a reel like that to the salt and risk corrosion.

[@BFSFISHINGCHANNEL]

Yea I think that definitely falls within the category of what this reel would excel at imho. Salt water use(please rinse after each session 😆) and/or a workhorse reel. Lmk what you end up doing haha but I kind feel like you’ve already made up your mind??? 🤔🤔🤔😆