Six Foot Six Inch Rods - The Best All Around Rod Length?

[hoosierbass07]

 I've been using a six foot six inch medium power Fenwick HMG spinning rod most of the summer and have really enjoyed using it.  I also have a seven foot St. Croix Triump and I enjoy using that too but not as much as the six foot six inch Fenwick.

 

  A few weeks ago I bought a St. Croix Mojo Bass seven foot medium heavy spinning rod.  I really like the stiffness of the rod and I'm glad I bought it.  After using it for a week I started thinking that the rod would be perfect if it was six foot and inch.  Since I really love my Fenwick HMG rod I decided to order another Fenwick HMG spinning rod - a medium heavy six foot six inch rod.  Well, it arrived today from Cabela's and I tried it out bank fishing this evening.  

 

 I have to say - wow, I love that rod!  I'm now a believer that six foot six inch rods are the best all around rods.  When I pick up a seven foot rod, it can cast a little further but seven foot rods feel a little too big.  Six foot six inch feels perfect though.  I was using eight pound mono on that new Fenwick and a weightless Yamamoto senko and that rod cast it very nice.  Also super accurate.  Every time I cast it out that senko felt like a perfect cast.  

 

I'm starting to think, at least for me, when bank fishing and kayak fishing, six foot six inch rods are the best out there.  Any more rods I buy are probably going to be six foot six inch, maybe a little longer or shorter but I don't want any seven foot rods.  Now I'm starting to wonder about six foot rods too. 

 

 So, what is everyone's favorite rod length for bass or all around fishing?  

 

 By the way - I think that Fenwick HMG rod is the prettiest fishing rod out there right now.   

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

There is no best length, power or action rod. Each is a tool with it's own purpose. My bass rods range from 6' to 8' with several in between. A lot of it is personal preference though. Sounds like you've found what works for you. I urge you to keep an open mind as you try new techniques though.

[Raul]

I can whup lots of butts when it comes to pinpoint accuracy with a 5'6" pistol grip rod.

[hoosierbass07]

The shorter the rod the more accurate you can cast?

[desmobob]

The shorter the rod the more accurate you can cast?

 

That's the way it feels to me... especially on short pitches.  I can keep the end of the rod and my target in my vision, even when pitching side-arm.  The longer rods feel sort of cumbersome when trying to make short, accurate casts.

 

Tight lines,

Bob

[cottny27]

I agree with the 6'6" preference. They get heavy when you go 7' and up.

[long island basser]

As mentioned it'll come down to personal preference and I like to use rods in the 6 to 6'8 length with my favorite two being 6'6 in length. I fish off a boat and most of the other boat anglers I know do prefer longer length rods( over 6'8) but to each his own.

[OntarioFishingGuy]

Sometimes 7' feels heavy to me too,but 6'6" rods are generally too stiff.

..

[new2BC4bass]

Too me it makes a difference what type of reel I am using.  When I got back into fishing, I went baitcast all the way at first.  I found I prefer 7' or longer.  However, I did upgrade my spinning rods over time.  With a BC rod 6'6" feels too short.  I have no problem with spinning rods of that length.  Actually I found I preferred the 6'6" size spinning rod to the 7'2" I use for my lightest lures.

 

I appropriated a few BC rods from 6'8" to 6'10" over the past couple years.  I realize it isn't a lot of difference between them and 6'6", but I've come to enjoy that range.  Give me a couple more years, and I'll probably be back to the point where a 6'6" feels as good to use as any of my longer rods.    It is probably a "newness" thing.  Never had a 7' rod before so they became my favorites.

[Cgrinder]

My preference seems to be between 6'8" and 6'10" these days. I feel like 6'6" is a little short. Then again, I'm reasonably tall at 6'1".

[S Hovanec]

Right now, 6'9" is my shortest rod. I really don't like rods less than that. I have a couple 6'10" blanks on the rack that will end up being 7' when I build them and a 7' that will wind up being 7'2". A couple years ago, I fell in love with a 7'6" MLXF SCIII. Plan on selling that one and building it again in the SCV series.

[Arv]

I like rods over 7'.

[Jrob78]

Different lengths for different techniques.   I have rods from 6'6" - 7'10" and they all have their purpose.

[SirSnookalot]

For bass and all around fishing I go from 6'6 to 8'.  I probably have over complicated it, my rod selection for any particular outing is based on boat, bank, high canal, species and wind, don't like using more than 7' if it's windy.  My most used bass rod is a 6'6 light power rod and most used other species would be a 7'6 med hvy.

[deep]

7'6" for me. I'd go with all 8 footers if I could find off-the-shelf rods in my preferred power and actions.

[rangerjockey]

The only time I like to go much over 7ft. is for a deep crankbait rod.. Most of my jig/plastic rods are 7 ft or 7ft 1.. I have a new IMX TWR 802 for topwater and stickbaits ,it's a great, well balanced rod but at 6ft 8 I wouldn't want it any longer for those uses.

[RAMBLER]

Seven foot for me, is cumbersome.  I fish out of a stumpknocker and I don't have a fishing platform.  The combination of the sides of the boat and my height (5'7") make using long rods awkward.  I like the 6'6" rods.  But I have a couple of pistol grip 5'6" and 6' baitcasters that really work well for me.  I found a couple of the brown fiberglass Abu rods, in yard sales, quite a few years ago that are my favorites.

[hoosierbass07]

I'm not that tall, maybe 5'8". So maby 6'6" rods are right rods for me. Maybe the next rod I get will be in the 6'8" range. Next time I visit the local gander mountain store I'll see if they have any 6' rods and 6'8" rods and try them out.

[Catch and Grease]

Depends what I'm using the rod for... But for the sake of the thread if I had to pick one rod length it would be 7'

[Delaware Valley Tackle]

Outside of personal preference, the only time I really factor for the angler's height is when building rods for tip-down applications like jerk baits, spooks etc. The exceptions would be youth rods and maybe some ladies builds. Other special circumstances like small crafts, bush whacking etc. as well.

[thehooligan]

6'8 is my favorite rod length for most applications. When im bank fishing i prefer 6-6'6 for for easier casting in tight places.

[Dwight Hottle]

All my rods are 6' to 7.5' My preferred rod length is 7'-7'-3 ". Sometimes you find a rod that just feels totally natural in your hands & it becomes your overall favorite. When that happens that particular rod length becomes your favorite as well.

I have fallen in love with 6-6, 7-0, 7-2, etc. Sometimes its not the rod length but the overall superiorty of the stick.

[nascar2428]

When I'm bank fishing, I bring a 6'6", 6'10" and a 7'. The most versatile of the bunch would be the 6'6". If I'm fishing from a tight area, the shorter rod comes into play every time. For a bank fisherman who likes to make his or her own spots to fish from, I think the 6'6" would be the ticket.

[WIGuide]

My rods range from 6' to 7'6"  with my preference for most techniques being in the 6'6" to 7' range. 

[roadwarrior]

The majority of my rods are 7', two are 6 1/2" and more recently 7'3'',

7'5" and 7 1/2'. I am gravitating toward the longer rods.

 

http://www.bassresource.com/fishing_lures/DHC7-761-CAHFS-primmus-review.html