Flipping rod selection help(length)

I'm looking to possibly get a new rod for flipping/frogs/deep dive cranks and I've been told by several folks to get a AG Veritas. I see they make a 7'6 and 7'11 is the extra length worth getting? I've read the 7'6 has more backbone than other similar rods so you can throw A-rigs on it, but I'm not sure is this is true. I mostly fish banks now, but I may have found a boater to start fishing with if that makes a difference.

Id like to keep it $100 or less for the rod and be able to get it locally from Academy/Dicks if you have any other good options.

I'd get the 7'6 if it were me. It'll handle frogs and flipping/pitching pretty well and it's definitely long enough to launch a crankbait. You'll be more happy with the shorter length.

I'm old school I guess, I don't like the super long rods except for very special uses. I still run a 6'6" for most of my applications.
It also makes a difference how tall you are. I've noticed that folks that are more vertically challenged seem to struggle with the 7'6 and longer rods.

Hard to flip with long rods unless you're tall

it makes them feel better though

I fish 2 primary rods for flipping and pitching. A Dobyns 734 for the most part and a Dobyns Savvy 7'6" as my back up rod. Hope this helps. Tight lines, keep safe and good luck.

Thad Rains

I'm 6'7 barefoot so I guess sky's the limit. My MH rod is 7'5 I like it, I guess I should go find a 7'11and handle it some I can't recall seeing one in any store around here though.

Eventually I want a boat so I guess a 7'6 would make more sense for rod lockers too. I really need to get my hands on both then make a decision.

I don't think you want a 7' 11" for pitching. Maybe for flipping, but how often do you really flip? I would go with the 7' 6". I'm 6 feet tall and a 7 footer is most comfortable for me pitching.

I liked the idea of the longer rod, but I'm starting to lean towards the 7'6 I think

Well I ended up getting my hands on a few rods and went with the 7'11'', at my height it seemed pretty good. Thanks for the help!

What he said. I have a 7'6" flippin rod and I'm just too short for it. I can use it, but my flipping/pitching is not as accurate as it is if I go with a 7'2' or 7'3' rod.

7'6" if your flipping brush or something open water but if your targeting under docks 7'2" is nice. Something you can handle

Hard to flip pitch with long rods unless you're tall.

There, I fixed it for you. I am continually amazed at the number of people who confuse the mechanics of flippin' and pitchin'. The terms are not interchangable.

Pitchin' involves lowering the rod tip, preferably as low as possible, then raising it sharply to propel a lure a considerable distance via aggressive pendulum effect. The lure momentum often takes line from the spool at a brisk pace. This is more easily done with a shorter rod to be able to drop the rod tip at the start of each cast; the shorter the angler, the shorter the rod.

Flippin' is a much less aggressive technique. It is more akin to "swinging the lure" where you want it to go with a rod tip generally up in the air. Line in front of the reel is held to the side by the off hand and the spool is usually engaged during the entire process unless the angler is adjusting to reach a spot farther away. This is vastly different than pitchin'.

I am 5'10". I can easily flip all day with my 8' Dobyn's flippin' rods with no awkwardness. What I can't do is PITCH with those 8' rods. My boat deck is high, but there isn't enough room to drop the tip of an 8' rod to PITCH.

Power Tackle PG-104. is what you want. Awesome rod.

I'm 6'7'' the 7'11 seems to be alright for me now that I got my hands on one its like a 6' guy with a 7'3 probably, Also I got a killer deal on it I couldn't say no

I have a Veritas 7'11 Hvy I use for flipping/punching and I love it. Recently bought a 7'9 Enigma and I should have just got another Veritas. The Enigma is nice but for the price I could get the Veritas for, it was no comparison.

IMO I would get the long rod for flipping and then get one a little shorter if your thinking of chucking deep cranks with it. The "Winch" series of Veritas would serve the deep cranking much better. They are Moderate rods and they load up very nice for bomber casting and control when fighting the fish.

I'm 5'11" and like the 8' rod for pitching. Less work to pitch makes it so I don't have to hurl the bait as hard as I can and lose accuracy.

7'2"- 7'4" is what I prefer, the shorter the lever, the more accurate you are going to be on pitches, flips and casts.

"I have a Veritas 7'11 Hvy I use for flipping/punching and I love it. Recently bought a 7'9 Enigma and I should have just got another Veritas. The Enigma is nice but for the price I could get the Veritas for, it was no comparison.

IMO I would get the long rod for flipping and then get one a little shorter if your thinking of chucking deep cranks with it. The "Winch" series of Veritas would serve the deep cranking much better. They are Moderate rods and they load up very nice for bomber casting and control when fighting the fish."


Great now I have to buy another rod haha.I'll make this one work for now probably.

Got a 7'3 MH fast for spinnerbaits on the same order, guess I should have waited and ordered 3

I've been using a 7' heavy to pitch with, you get plenty of leverage out of it (assuming you control the line and rod angle), and I can be a ton more accurate under docks and limbs. I flip very little but use a 7'6 xh.

If you eliminate the dual need (casting crankbaits) for your new rod and focus just on pitching and flipping, then I think you'd be much better off with a short rod.

You'll gain much greater leverage over the fish and you'll be much more accurate with your pitching.

A 6 ft rod wouldn't be too short if you are mainly pitching. For flipping? Longer might help lay the lure down softly farther away if you are targeting holes to penetrate very quietly.

I agree with the one poster who said most of us pitch; way fewer anglers flip all that often . . . though it is a great technique for sure. Watching someone adept at flipping is like watching an artist at work.

Brad

If your flipping thick stuff go with a shorter rod (I use a Falcon Amistad. Have also used a Kistler Mag2 7'0). Like Brad said it will give you leverage on the fish. If I flip stumps I will use a 7'6(I am 5'8" and have no issues flipping it). I am usually farther away from the target and like the longer rod to pick up more line on hook set.

My home water was south Florida for 20 years. I fished quite a bit with little more than flippin' gear in the boat. Thick vegetation was a mainstay. I never really had leverage issues with a largemouth bass due to the fish's strength, regardless of rod length. A 20 pound Dorado, sure...a bass, ummm, no.

We used the longest flippin' rods available. Why? For as much vertical lift (of the fish) as we could get. The best chance of landing a fish was to bring it UP and out the hole the lure went into. A shorter rod meant you had more angle to the side of the hole. The more you pulled a fish to the side (rather than up) the bigger and bigger the ball of vegetation holding the fish got. It was the bulldozed wad of vegetation that caused the problem, not the fish's strength.

For any given distance to where a lure lands, a longer rod provides a better angle of pull to the fish than a shorter rod. The only time I favor a shorter rod is in tight quarters for maneuverability. That wasn't an issue in South Florida with no overhanging tree cover.

Flippin-Out is correct about the angle. My assumptions for the two graphics below are that after the flip or pitch that the butt of the rod is up at 5 feet, then extends another 6' or 7' depending on which length one chooses. So, note the 11' and 12' lengths below, adding 5 feet to each. And, I also assumed a 20 ft. distance between the angler's feet and the hole it punches through, no adjustment made for the height off the water.

It amounts to about a 4 degrees shift, that is, a 7 foot rod's line would be 4 degrees more vertical than a 6 footer. So, it is correct that a longer rod will "lift" the fish more vertically, better chance of cranking it out of the same hole the lure fell through. Better be fast, though!

Situations differ, no one length is optimal. Here, you choose between leverage and accuracy . . . over the 4 degrees or so lifting angle and quicker take-up of the line at and after the hook set.

Good stuff. Nerdy, but "putting a number" to it.

See my calcs below.

Brad

I should have added one more statistic and that is this:

If after your pitch or flip to your spot and you quickly assume the 45 degree rod angle, how much difference is there in line take up between a 6 and 7 footer? Assuming the numbers I have used above, if you get bit and yank really hard to set the hook by raising your rod tip to vertical, the 6 footer would pull the line 8.3 feet versus the extra foot of rod pulling the line 8.997 feet, so the sweep one makes with the rod to set the hook would yield another 6" if you go to a longer rod.

This is just about angles. Rods bend, of course, and there are other elements at work. But, think here of the line distance pulled moving the rod tip from a 45 degree to 90 degree angle.

Brad