most of mine are bout 2 ft. tall before the flip,and yes,i use the stem crush method to keep em a little shorter!I have some of those Craftsman "robo-grip" slip-joint plyers that only compress a little. As soon as they make contact the jaws set, then only tighten a little more from there. AND they came with plastic guards I've never has a use for sounds like a plan!
I just don't get too many that become unmanageable since I flip them at about a foot tall. They cannstretch three times the original height and I still have three feed of head-room.