JGBassinAL

You can pitch and flip with any reel. A lighter weight lure will pitch and flip easier with a lighter spool. I use a Shimano Scorpion 1500-7 on my flippin rod. You really need a reel with a good drag because you will be moving fish out of cover. I like the Scorpion because I have always been a fan of the Curado E, which to me is a workhorse reel and handles great under pressure. Plus they are not overly expensive, and the maroon color matches my black with red accents flipping stick pretty well.

And I don't know why I used that animation. I think it's because Raul is crackin me up and that animation cracks me up, it's contagious.

I know they say not to boat flip bigger fish but I do it a lot. I feel as long as you use correct technique and use your hand about a foot above the reel seat to assist in the lifting then it doesn't put as much stress on the rod and it will be fine. I've boat flipped a couple 5 lb smallies with a glass crankin rod and haven't had any problems. BUT, I could just be very lucky haha.

I don't know Jack but I know people like Jack and this made me laugh hahahaha

I said I was gonna let it go, but I have one more post, and in no way questioning anyone. Thank you for letting me know that he has used it, as I was not going to dig through posts to see if he had. It's funny because I used to own A LOT of Ducketts, and the 7'3" heavy White Ice was my favorite one, until the reel seat stripped, and guides started popping off on hooksets. I don't baby my equipment, but I'm not hard on it either. I also had two other White Ice rods and a handful of Micro Magics, and I got two Micro Magics straight from Duckett with misaligned guides. One guide was on the side of the rod compared to others. Also, I had the 7'11" White Ice swimbait rod that snapped right above the reel seat when casting a light Alabama Rig, that is just unacceptable...Anyways, I used a DX 745 after the White Ice and that is why I let them go. Quality control and feel. I prefer the actions of Dobyns rods better, and I find the sensitivity of the Champion to be better than the White Ice, not just the DX. But, I understand that SenkoGuru likes the Ducketts better and that's fine with me. It doesn't make me one difference. I had no way of knowing that he had fished a DX, as all he said was that he had used a Dobyns. I think what bothers me is that the OP asked about the Savvy, then there comes the people talking about all the Dobyns lines for no reason. It wasn't even part of the OP's original post. No need to bash a rod when it wasn't even mentioned. But since you brought up Duckett, I thought I would give my opinion on it. Like I said, if you like Duckett better SenkoGuru, then by all means use it. Whatever feels the best in anyones hand is what they should use. I agree with what you said earlier, these are all opinions and different strokes for different folks. I just don't see a need in talking down the DX when that isn't the model the OP was asking about. It seems to happen on every thread mentioning Dobyns these days.

Thanks Hootie and iabass8 for bringing me to my senses.

If you want a softer, more limp fluorocarbon then just buy Sunline Sniper FC and use KVD L&L once a week. Works for me...

I know that you know the prices of them, but have you ever fished them? I agree, the Savvy isn't worth much. I would put the Champ more in the $200 price range, not amazing sensitivity but good, and immaculate build quality. The DX is well worth the money and is extremely sensitive, as stated in my earlier post. You say you would price it at $200? It blows everything in that price range out of the water no question.

I felt a fish chomp my jig 15 ft deep on slack line the other day on a DX745. I don't know how that's not sensitive...

I can get you a custom built for well under the price of a Champion. Shoot me a pm if you are interested.

I actually had that exact line on a crankin setup and threw it around rocks and caught a handful of 4-5 lb smallies and plenty 2-4 lb on it and I thought it handled well. It wasn't amazing on abrasion resistance but I was throwing crank baits on rocks so I was checking my line and knots every few casts and retying often. I did start experiencing the fraying you are talking about, but that was after about two months and a fluorocarbon like Sufix is going to need to be respooled probably every month or month and a half, depending on how much you fish. Overall I didn't think it was that bad of line, although for twice the price you can get 200 yds of Sunline Sniper (two times more line) which is ten times the line Suffix invisible fluoro is.

Thanks TrippyJai!

Not trying to hijack the thread but I have been contemplating buying a scorpion 1000xt for a while (I already have a 1500xt and love it). I was wondering if there is any way to put 7.x:1 gears in the scorpion? I don't want to spend the extra for the core but I won't buy the scorpion either if I can't put those higher gears in. I really like the scorpion series but would like a 50 size with 7.x:1 gears. Thanks!

Go ahead and get a DX, the tip on a 5 power DX isn't as flimsy as the tip on a 5 power Champion. Plus, there is more sensitivity in the DX series which would be even more beneficial with jigs.

I throw mine on a custom 7' mh glass rod. Love glass for topwater!

NOOO, if you liked the 745 then there's no way you will be happy with the 702. I think a 4 power rod will work the best for you.

It never stops man, it never stops. Personally, I would go with the Core but only cause I love Shimano. I have not used a Steez but I'm sure you will be happy with it. Not gonna lie tho, I have a Metanium HG and a Chronarch Ci4+ and I don't prefer one or the other, so if you were going to go the Metanium route, you could save some money by getting the Chronarch.

You will appreciate spending the extra money on the DX IMO, especially for bottom contact baits. But for the weights you mentioned and wanting to throw a spinnerbait in a pinch, your best option is going to be a 4 power rod. Also, the Champion series has more give in the tip than the DX, so a 5 power Champion will have a lighter tip than the DX745 you threw.

How light is that RX8+ huh? All of my rods are built on rainshadow blanks, but that is the one blank I do not have yet. Once I save up a good bit of money I'll have one though! I held a 7'0" medium heavy that weighed 2.4 oz...

How much are you looking to spend on these setups?

I think the only thing that really matters is a proper hookset. I use a custom 7'3" heavy power glass rod for all of my buzzbait/chatterbait/hollow bodied swimbait fishing and I have never had a problem hooking a fish or keeping fish pinned. I used to throw these on a custom 7'4" heavy graphite rod and I lost about 3 out of every 10 fish, and most of them were the bigger fish. With a heavy power glass rod, the tip isn't as whippy as a crankbait rod, but has a lot more give than a heavy power graphite rod. IMO, the reason my hookup percentage has gone out the roof is because the give in the tip allows the fish to really get that bait in there and the pressure from the fish taking the bait deep already hooks them pretty well, then my hookset further solidifies the hook penetration. Then the give from the tip also helps keep the fish on when they surge at the boat. Just my two cents.

The ghost is not the same blank as the micro magic btw. I don't have a ghost but my cousin does. I used to have a boat load of micro magics and white ices, and when using my cousins ghost, it is definitely not the same blank. Plus, have you noticed how the ghost turns yellow in a couple months? Not very aesthetically pleasing.

Anytime Eric! BTW welcome to Bass Resource. If you ever need anything or have any questions shoot me a PM. There are a lot of great people on here that will do whatever they can to give you quality advice!

That's easy. Check out Hawgtech, awesome handles and customer service! Oh and they are a board sponsor!

I use stick jackets, best ones made IMO. I will use them when transporting rods in my truck or when I have them in my rod locker. I ALWAYS have them on in my rod locker. First tournament I fished without using them in my rod locker was enough to make me never do that again!