I'm starting to pay attention to bottom bouncers and thinking about giving them a try this summer.  Has anyone used this system by Wing-it.  It looks incredibly versatile and you can even switch off the bouncer weights with slip sinkers without ever having to untie.  The only concern would be whether the silicon sleeve would be secure enough.  Otherwise this is a system that looks like it solves a lot of problems at once.  Thoughts?
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Do you mean slip on the line?
I just bought these. Once the Clevis goes on line, the weight's snap in and out. You can use any weight pencil type bouncer with a eyelet.

I told Kerry in a PM that I could see some potential issues with that Wingit system.
The first is that sooner or later that silicone sleeve is going tear in that rock rip/rap you see a lot of in the Q. That means your going to lose that lead weight. Not what you want environmentaly if you can help it.
I guess if you check it frequently you'd decrease that risk, but I have another concern as well.
I think that Bulbous shape of the bouncer makes it a good candidate to get wedged in the rocks compared to a pencil type of bouncer. Another thing is if you go to that set-up you need to buy all your weights and the rest of the system exclusive from them. The sliding bouncers I linked too, once you put the Clevis on your line, you can use ANY bottom bouncer that will snap into that Clevis. The clevis on the Northland is shaped like a torpedo and I can't see it being a problem for the action of crank baits/spinners/spoons staying permanently on your line?

I guess one of you serous fishing guys needs too do a field test and see if my concerns are relevant or just worst case scenario thinking?




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I tried the bottom bouncer from Northland, pencil shape.  They are made out of steel so you don't have the lead issue.  They are fairly expensive.  I was disappointed because I got snagged in rocks a lot more than I expected.  They worked fine for trolling for trout in deeper water, but that's not they were designed to do.  They are also a little awkward to use and tends to twist around the line when not in the water. 

I fished with my brother-in-law in North Dakota on one of the reservoirs with bottom bouncers.  We didn't have much trouble with snagging, but the bottom was more clay than rocks.  Plus, he knew what he was doing.

Yeah, Wally and I have the same concern.  I want to be able to get down to at least 25 - 35 feet for Walleye and more if I wanted to use the same system for trout in late summer.  The Rock-Runner is only going to be good for 15, maybe 20 feet.  The advantage of the Wing-it system is that they include a full range of weights from ½ oz. right up to 4 oz.  So I'm going to give them a try.  The Rock-Runners look like they'd be worth a look, though, along with those heavier pencil bouncers that ST pointed out - just to compare.

Would it be correct to assume that using in-line weights would raise the same problem you're describing with bottom bouncers?