Slinkies were popular in Washington for steelhead and salmon fishing. I used pencil lead myself, get some hole punch pliers, you can snip off whatever length of lead you need, flatten one end, punch a hole in the flat end and hook your swivel up. Snaggier than the slinky, but a lot easier to make.
I would use a baitcaster too, that way you can thumb the spool and let line out to let your stuff slide down with the current.