Weight for drift rig?

[bgault]

I'm headed to Taney / Table Rock again next week and it looks like still no-wading (heavy sigh) so will likely do some drift fishing ...

What's the best set-up for a drift rig (for nightcrawlers). Last time (first time I tried drift fishing on Taney) I used a three way swivel with an 1/8 ounce Lindy No-Snag (see pic below) as the weight connected directly to the 3-way ... and then the hook (#10) on about 24 inches of line attached to the 3-way. I liked the way the Lindy smoothly moved along the bottom. It was pretty easy to tell the difference between fish and bottom ... but I lost a couple of them in snags and they are not terribly cheap. (Need to learn were the snags are on Taney.) I tried a heavy split shot about 24 inches above the hook for awhile but that seemed to produce a lot of "false positives" as the split bumped across the bottom. I fed a lot of fish when rigged up with the split and set the hook on a lot of rocks!

So ... looking for some recommendations on the best way to lash up for drift fishing crawlers. Do you use a 3-way swivel? What is the best weight to use? How heavy for 4 units of water? Have you tired the Lindy No-Snag? Are there other "no-snag" options? How far below the weight should the hook and crawler be, etc. etc.

[Terrierman]

Best drift rig ever. 3 way swivel. One eye to the main line. Bottom swivel 10 inches to a piece of 1/16" dia. surgical tubing about 4" long. You can tie the tubing to the line with a clinch with the wraps around the tube if that makes sense. Eye opposite the one to the main line to about an 18" 2 to 4 lb leader. Use a piece of solder stuck into the surgical tubing for weight. Start with a piece about 4" long. Adjust the weight to where you feel the bottom just ticking along every few seconds. Works for egg, minnow, crawler, power egg, you name it. Very snag resistant too.

[TheRustyHook]

simple drift rig,

1/8 ounce bullet weight in most flows hung above a

simple small swivel connected to a

12"-18" leader

tied to an in-line spinner attached to a

size 6 or 8 hook

baited with a nightcrawler, shrimp, or meal worm and 2 powerbaits to slightly float it off the bottom.

I find the bullet weight rolls well across the bottom. You will probably lose a few in-line spinners, but they are usually pretty cheap

green 4 pound trilene is my favorite line.

[Gatorjet]

You don't need the fancy, and expensive lindy sinkers.

About 2-3' feet of 4Lb line with a loop tied nine or so inches from one end. Some sort of weight on tye short end. I use some small bullet weights, stacked up until it keeps the rig bouncing the bottom. Then hold them on by pincing a small split shot on the bottom. On the other end I tie a #6 circle hook. That helps prevent the fish swollowing the hook. Also, with the circle hook the fish tend to hook themselves without a hard hookset being needed. Feel some extra weight on your line, and just start reeling. 90% of the fish I catch with this rig are hooked in the corner of their mouth. I use 6Lb line on my drift rods, and a good snap swivel to attach the rigs. The weights are most often what gets hung up if you get snagged, and with a light crimp on the split shot, they will often slip off, saving the remaining rig, and hook.

If you don't want to bother making your own, Lilleys sell the drift rigs already made up with a sinker, nd hook ready to go. They work fine, I just added a few refinements to my own.

[rainbow]

The simpler the better and the cheaper when you are snagged. There are snags all over Taney and the change all the time. The rigs sold in Phil's shop work just fine or you can buy the hooks and weights and tie your own. Bell weight on the bottom and a dropper looped tied with a double surgeon knot about 18" up the line. Use the lightest weight you can for the current and you won't get hung up as much.