Down-rigger or snan-on weights?

[B2]

I was looking to put Downriggers on a boat but,
after talking to a staff member/pro at Cabela's
he said that is a fade of the past.
He just uses snap weights and long line.

I fish Mille Lacs, Lake o' Woods, Vermilion, and
possibly Superior in MN.

Is there a preference?
Would you carry both.
Considering cost. DownRig's are not cheap...But?

Any input would be great.
How low can you get with snap-on's...?

[Bob Z]

I think it depends how deep you want to drag your cranks and spinners.

I fish Erie and I can get a deep diving crank down 25 + ft. with 10 lb. Fireline - without weight.

Some guys in the Erieau area are goin down 40 + feet with deep diving cranks and weights.

Deeper than that probably requirers downriggers.

The other consideration may be the spread of your lures. You may be able to get a few more lures in the water with a combination of downriggers and boards.

Downriggers are spendy and if you can run the spread you want effectively at the depth you want without....

I'm sure there will be other thoughts. What do the downrigger fisher people think?

[Kevin A.]

If that's a direct quote from the 'pro' at Cabela's then either he's quite young or an idiot. If he only fishes shallow water (less than 50 feet) then he's right...snap weights and long lines will do it, but if he get's around any larger boats running riggers he'll catch himself a 35 footer in about 10 minutes and they typically keep on going.

Riggers have a very specific purpose...get baits deep without having 300 feet out or get them even deeper than any longline will reach. They help when you want baits deep and tucked in close to the boat (when you fish in heavy traffic). Once you're used to them they're just as easy to run shallow, but not really necessary. Get them if you need them. If you're not sure you need them then you don't need them (yet).

[Gilligan]

Downriggers are still very effective. I fish deep Erie east basin and can pick up eyes over 100' at times. I like to run a short lead deep and add a stacker up high on a long lead.