Welcome to the Favorite Fishing Black Swan Rod Review. Favorite Fishing has a healthy global following in Europe, Asia and USA but isn’t a household name in Australia. This is surprising considering they have an existing mature line-up of fishing rods, spin reels, bait casters, apparel and accessories. In 2022 Favourite Fishing are embarking on a new journey to establish itself in the Australian market which is already quite a saturated space with household names like Shimano, Daiwa, Penn, Abu Garcia, and others.
I have stumbled across some Favorite rods and reels over the years but was keen to know more about Favorite Fishing as they break into the Aussie market. I explored the gear they had available locally and got my hands on a new Black Swan fishing rod which is Favorites premier high-end spin rod that retails for $499.
The rod is strikingly simply by design yet very clever. Going with a minimalistic approach to reduce weight in every component possible. I love finesse and ultra-light fishing and own many rods in this space that weigh between 96 grams and 135 grams. However, this Black Swan rod the BSW1-722UL-HS weighed a staggering 58 grams. Yes, that is not a typo that’s correct 58 grams which is much lighter than all my existing high-end ultra-light rods. This had me intrigued to know what it felt like in the hand when battling a fish and whether it would be durable. Watch the full video below of us roadtesting the Favorite Black Swan.
Black Swan blank construction
The rod is made from Toray T1100 Carbon which is a high-end material driven from the JDM market. This blank construction is simple and stylish. I find that many ultra-light rods in the market are slow action, flimsy and whippy however the Black Swan rod is pleasantly fast action and stiff. It’s very responsive making it an ideal soft plastics rod to feel all the enquiries and to set the hook quickly.
The rod tip is the thinnest I’ve ever come across with titanium fuji micro guides with torzite inserts. The amazing lightweight distribution just enhances fun finesse fishing to an extreme level but there are some things you will need to consider before buying one of these rods. Such as fishing with the thinnest diameter line and using slim knots like an FG if your tying braid to fluorocarbon leaders because the guides are so small. Also, general handling of the rod with care during transportation and whilst fishing.
The reduced weight reduction is done at every component of the Black Swan rod starting at the very bottom with a tiny piece of EVA foam on the butt section, and a very comfortable IPS reel seat. Again, a minimalistic approach sticking to a simple yet stylish plain black look and only adding EVA where needed. I really like this approach and have always wondered why other manufacturers add so much unnecessary weight to rods with large grips. I own several high-end rods that use skeleton reel seats to reduce weight however this reel seat feels so much more comfortable in the hand and they have managed to keep the weight down by reducing the volume of epoxy resin in the EVA foam. The reel seat is at a really nice height to help with long casting.
Visually it’s a clean and simple design. The rod is minimalistic, simple but so smart. The black colour scheme throughout the whole rod, no over usage of colour or logos and simple clean handles and guides.
My intended usage of this rod
I bought the Black Swan rod specifically for casting lightly weighted soft plastics. Fishing either land-based or from my Hobie Pro Angler 14 kayak. The 7 foot 2 and ex-fast action is a perfect combination for soft plastics fishing applications. I will be targeting inshore fish species including bream, pinkies, whiting, trevally, snook and freshwater species including trout, redfin and yellow belly. Mainly casting small soft plastics such as 2.5-inch grubs and paddle tails on 1/12 through to 1/40 jig heads weights.
Black Swan Performance
I have used the rod on several occasions and for testing purposes mixed up the reels that it was paired with. At first, using a favorite Fishing Sirius 2500S, then switching to a Shimano Vanford 2500 and a Daiwa Luvias 2000S to really emphasise the lightweight. When the Black Swan Rod ( 58 grams ) was paired with my Luvias 2000 ( 150 grams ) that’s a combo that weighs 208 grams which is staggering.
The performance on the water was excellent. The rod was responsive, well balanced, casts well and handled many fish with ease. I initially was concerned about how the rod would hold up with such a light rod tip however all the power is controlled from the butt section and the ultra-thin rod tip really enhanced the catches making it enjoyable and a pleasure to use on the water. This finesse style of fishing makes you enjoy the fight and carefully take your time and allow fish to go on little runs and pull some line of the spool. My sessions on the water included many catches of bream up to 40cm, pinkies up to 48cm and snook up to 80cm. I was quite taken back by how comfortable the rod felt in the hand, how well balanced it was when paired with a reel under 200 grams and how enjoyable the catches were.
Favorite Fishing Black Swan review summary
The Good
- Lightest fishing rod I’ve used and arguably the lightest fishing rod on the market today
- Very comfortable
- Simple yet stylish design
- High-quality components
Specs
- BSW1-722UL-HS
- 58 grams
- 7 foot 2 inches ( 2 pieces ) split perfectly in the middle
- titanium fuji torzique guides micro guides.
- Toray T1100 Carbon
- Simply EVA handles + IPS reel set with reduced resin
- Fast action
- Surprisingly solid
- $499 Aud
To be improved
- You will need to handle this rod with extreme care. The rod tip is so thin and brittle and the bottom guides are very delicate. I understand this has been done intentionally to create further weight reduction but a few additional grams here and there to add some support I think would have been smarter to make the rod more durable.
- The addition of a small and lightweight hook keeper.
Favorite Fishing Black Swan Conclusion
I was pleasantly surprised just how much I liked this rod. It’s comparable if not better than several of my other very high-end rods which I have used for many years. I was taken away by the crazy lightweight of 58 grams, the insanely thin rod tip, but more importantly the simple yet elegant and stylish design. It requires a lot of care as it’s very delicate. time will tell just how durable these rods are espcially those super thin rod tips but it handles well on the water and takes ultra-light fishing to another level.
Delivery timeframes
We would highly recommend you reach out to Favorite Fishing directly using the contact details below to confirm stock availability and delivery timeframes. The Black Swan I received was delivered quickly and came delivered in an amazing plastic case and rod sleeve, something I have not received before with any other high-end rod.
Warranty
All rods, and reels purchased come with a 12-month warranty, again for any enquiries or warranty questions we would encourage you to contact Favorite Fishing Australia using the contact details below.
Where you can find these rods
These rods are now available in Australia and can be purchased from https://www.favoritefishinganz.com/shop/p/favourite-black-swan you can also make product enquiries at info@favoritefishinganz.com or called at 0490006623
Additions or corrections
Thanks for reading the Favorite Fishing Black Swan Rod Review. If you have any questions, corrections or additions then please direct them to enquiries@fishingmad.com.au and we will get back to you as soon as we can. Don’t forget to check out our other FishingMad product reviews as well.