This is a slow death rig for walleye detailed guide. In this post, we’ll go over what a slow death rig is, how to set it up properly, and how to use it to catch walleye. When the slow death rig was initially released a few years ago, it stormed the walleye fishing world. It was also hailed as a secret weapon that allowed anglers who knew about it to win numerous walleye contests.
While the slow-death rig is no longer as effective as it once was (because of its widespread use), it is still one of the best walleye trolling rigs available. It should be included in your armoury for successful walleye exploration.
What Is The Definition Of A Slow-Death Rig?
A slow death rig comprises weight, a leader, and a slow death hook on a trolling rig. The hook is baited with either a nightcrawler or a leech. It has a long shank bent in a triangle shape to help it spin with a leisurely rotating action when pulled through the water. The slow death rig is most commonly used for trolling walleye when connected with a bottom bouncer weight. However, it may also be used for exploring trout when combined with other consequences (such as a Lindy rig).
Let’s go right to the point and speak about how to knot a slow-death rig and use it efficiently.
Slow Death Rig For Walleye Detailed Guide Setup
We’ll go over setting up a slow death rig with a bottom bouncer because that’s the most common combination. To make a quiet death rig with a bottom bouncer, you’ll need the following items:
- Mainline: 10 to 15-pound braid (or monofilament)
- Leader: Fluorocarbon test 6 to 12 pounds (or monofilament)
- Hook: Slow death hooks in sizes 1 to 4
- Weight: Bottom bouncer, 1 to 3 ounces
Tie your mainline to the bottom bouncer first. I choose braid as your mainline since it gives you more sensitivity when it comes to the feeling when you strike the bottom with the bottom bouncer weight (since braid has almost no stretch).
A braided mainline also has a smaller diameter than a mono for the same line strength. It is easier for your rig to get down in the water column because less drag forces your line up in the water.
Next, snell your slow death hook onto your leader line (I recommend size 2 Mustad slow death hooks). Fluorocarbon is the finest choice for a leader since it has the lowest visibility in the water and does not startle shy walleye like other fishing lines.
Measure out 2 to 7 feet of the leader line after snelling the hook, and tie a loop at the end of your leader. The walleye’s shyness determines the length of the leader; the longer the leader, the more finicky the walleye. Finally, secure your leader’s loop to the bottom bouncer’s snap swivel, and you’re ready to go.
This is the most basic slow-death rig version, which works well for catching walleye in most settings. You can also add a spinner rig in front of the hook, a spin-n-go bobber, or a sliding float threaded into the leader above the hook to make it even more effective.
When the fish don’t respond to the standard slow death setup, these variants provide extra vibrations and light signals in the water, assisting in inducing walleye bites.
Related post: Best Spinning Reel For Walleye – Top Best Walley Spinning Reel
What Is The Best Way To Rig A Worm On A Slow-Death Hook?
Insert the slow death hook’s tip into the end of the nightcrawler and Thread the worm onto the hook until it is completely encased in the worm. Next, poke the hook’s tip out of the worm’s side to stick out. Finally, cut the worm around 1 inch below the hook (don’t use the entire worm because you’ll get a lot of small strikes). Slow death hooks are made to be used with large nightcrawlers; however, to cause bites, the worm must be correctly rigged.
This is the most basic slow-death rig version. To keep the nightcrawler from sliding down the hook while trolling, thread it past the tag end of the slow death hook’s snell knot. Most slow death hooks include at least one additional barb on their shank to keep the worm from slipping down, but I’ve found that the tag end of the snell knot works better.
How Do You Troll Walleye With A Slow-Death Rig?
Let’s talk about walleye slow-death fishing and how to make the most of your equipment. Trolling this rig is by far the best way to fish it, as it allows you to cover much land in search of hungry walleye and is one of the most effective ways to catch walleye in the summer.
Trolling a slow-death rig
It’s critical to troll a slow death rig at a slow speed of between 0.7 and 1 mph. While you can travel up to 1.2 mph with this rig, slower is usually better since it gives the walleye more time to catch up with your bait, examine it more closely, and then devour it.
When trolling a slow-death rig, keeping your weight in continual contact with the bottom is critical. The simplest method is to keep an eye on your fish finder and let out more lines if the water starts to get deeper or reel it in if it starts to get shallower.
It’s typically advisable to use a slightly heavier weight, such as 2 or 2 1/2 oz, to get your rig down to the bottom faster when you see the depth shifting.
Tips for trolling walleye
If the walleye aren’t attacking violently and are simply nibbling at your bait, try switching from a bottom bouncer to a sliding weight arrangement (like the Lindy rig), which gives you the opportunity to offer the walleye some slack line before setting the hook. This will often result in a more excellent hook-up ratio since the walleye will have a chance to devour your bait before the hook is set by you. If the walleye are hung slightly over the bottom, tie a small sliding float onto the leader, just above your slow death hook, to lift your presentation in the water. You can then modify the exact depth by adjusting the length of your leader and how quickly you troll this setup.
Slow Death Rig For Walleye Detailed Guide Tips
Slow Death Trolling Speed
For slow-death fishing, your trolling speed should be around one mph. You can now get away with 0.6 mph and occasionally push it to 1.5 or even higher. But, as the term implies, you’re usually fishing for a slow death.
The manner slow death fishing can be fished is what makes it so effective. Keep things basic and quiet if you’re dealing with a cold front. However, as summer approaches and water temperatures rise, so should your speed (typically). Another advantage of slow-death rigging overfishing blade rigs is the time it takes for a blade to revolve. Larger blades require faster movement, often too fast to mix and match with slow-death setups.
Read more at Trolling Rigs For Lake Trout You Need To Know
Slow Death Rig Lengths
The clarity of the water is a good guideline for leader lengths. Keep the hook away from the bottom bouncer if the water is crystal clear. Use shorter leads if you can get away with it. Use shorter leaders if you can get away with it. Why? Because longer leads drag on the bottom when moving slowly. This is usually where your hook gets stuck or picks up detritus. We should tie slow death rigs with mono to avoid headaches and keep the leaders 2-3 feet long.
What Weights to Use
When I’m fishing this method, I almost always use bottom bouncers. The main reason is that most bottom bouncers on the market have a built-in swivel. If feasible, I try to maintain my bait approximately a foot off the bottom. The best method to accomplish it is with a bottom bouncer.
Blow it Up
Another old-school trick is to use a worm blower to inflate the crawler slightly. This will assist the crawler in floating and stay off the ground. Although this has been around for decades, it’s remarkable how few people do it.
Slow Death Rigs with Spoons
The latest trend is a hybrid of everything we’ve seen before, with slow death hooks, a long and narrow spoon, and blades on top. A lot is going on, but it appears to be lethal in the water.
So there you have it: some basic yet excellent walleye fishing strategies for a slow death. I usually begin fishing crawlers in the late spring and continue throughout the summer. If you plan on fishing, this technique frequently stocks up on crawlers, and be prepared to go through much bait. It’s a shambles, but it’s a blast.
Conclusion
Fishing for walleye requires patience and a steady learning process. We hope these pointers assist you in landing the walleye of your dreams. Through this post, I hope that you will understand what a slow death rig is, how to set it up properly, and how to utilize it to catch walleye.