In this video, tournament pro Max Wilson covers another effective deep water trolling technique.
Like Dipsy Divers, snap weights are another great way to target deep suspended fish. They have the added benefit of being used with planer boards, making it easier to get the bait even further away from the boat. Max also likes to run these in tangent with his Dipsy Divers, allowing him to target any higher flying fish that might be spooked by the boat.
Weight Size
When it comes to choosing the size of the snap weight, it typically depends on the depth of the water he is fishing. When he’s fishing Green Bay, where he will often fish in 20 feet or less, he prefers a smaller 1 ounce or even 1/2 ounce snap weight. When fishing in 40 to 60 feet Max likes to go with 3 ounce weights and on Lake Erie, Max opts for something larger like the 5 ounce he is using in this video – where he is fishing in 87 feet of water and finding fish 50 to 60 feet down.
Setup
When setting up snap weights, Max generally lets out roughly 20-30′ of line before connecting the weight. Then, keeping the line tight, he lets the line out to the targeted depth. Max recommends using the Precision Trolling Data App to help determine how much line to let out. Heavier weights can be more difficult, therefore don’t be afraid to play around with your setup to dial it in.
Lure Selection
When choosing his baits, Max selects something that mimics the main forage which, currently on Lake Erie, is smelt. He also opts for something with a tighter wobble that helps mimic the smelt behavior. However, he emphasizes the need to keep a variety of baits with different actions on hand, to mimic the changing bait and behavior that may be encountered.
In conclusion, using snap weights when trolling works well in 20 feet of water down to even 80 or 90 feet of water. Don’t be afraid to play with the snap weights to get down to the suspended fish. Snap weights are a great way to target suspended walleye on any lake and a tactic that can be added to anyone’s deep water trolling arsenal.
