Divers vs. Weights and Downriggers

I have yet to use any sort of divers.
I have done the 10-12oz cannonballs a ton of course, and have enjoyed using my downrigger, but have yet to get a non-koke salmon with it.
It seems not many people use the divers, and I was wondering why. Theoretically, it seems like they may be the best option. No cumbersome weights, more streamlined and less gear and tangles than using a downrigger....

So, are there any reasons not to use a diver? Any tips or tricks to employ whilst using one?
I'm sure a lot of it is personal preference, just trying to get educated!
Thanks in advance!

I've seen divers used for Coho especially, in the Sound and Ocean. I've done quite well with them in these environments. One issue is they need a lot of speed/current to dive effectively vs down riggers or weights which rise up or blow back as they go faster.

The deep sixes work great but can be a little finicky to get to release properly.

I haven't had any experience with using them in rivers but I imagine weights are preferred because they can be fished on a dropper and when you get snagged up you can just lose the weight vs a diver and the entire rig being lost

My first advice is stay away from divers that remain underwater after your hookup. They just become a drag when fighting the fish even if they have the "release" mechanism to tip them towards the surface. In my opinion a JET DIVER will be a very good option for trolling a lure or a bait when set up properly.

Your rigging is simple: thread a sliding sinker sleeve on your pole line. Attach a quality ball bearing swivel to the line. Rig up your Jet Diver like in the photo. Attach your 'dropper' line on the diver to your sliding sleeve. The photo shows a silver 40 foot diver and a green 10 foot diver. You can buy them from 10 to 50 foot dive range.

From your ball bearing swivel attach your leader with your lure or bait rig. Adding a flasher or dodger will definitely affect the dive performance of the Diver due to the drag. You don't want to rig the Diver with your leader/lure/bait attached to the bottomside swivel.  When you hook a fish, the Jet Diver will start sliding up the line towards the surface and producing very little drag during the fight. Its also a good "flag" showing where the fish is as it gets closer to the surface.

The bottom graphic is the "official Jet Diver" data for operating the rig.  The values as you can see are based on 17 pound MONO at 0.38mm diameter and a line pay out of 100 feet for the optimum performance. NOTE that if you were to use 20 pound braided tuf line at 0.18mm with HALF the diameter of the mono there would be a substantial reduction of line drag in the water, and therefore, the depths will probably be from 5 to 10 feet deeper than the Diver's rating. Without the need to have a box full of various depth ratings, as the chart shows you can vary the depth by changing your trolling speeds, faster for deeper, slower for shallower.

One bonus is if you get snagged and your pole line breaks above the swivel, the diver will just float off the line and you can run it down and retrieve it and only lose your hook rig.

Most of the time here in AK we use these with a Kwikfish and backtroll in the rivers for Kings and Coho salmon. But you can adapt them for lakes and ocean as you see fit.

Wow, thanks for that tutorial sir!
Great info!
It all makes perfect sense.
I will for sure be giving this a try.

Cheers!

The only times I've used a Deep Six is when targeting Chinook in deep, open water. Other than that, I can't stand em on a kayak. I'm not a fan of the resistance they put on my rod (especially in swelly conditions), and they slow down my forward momentum. The release mechanism for a hooked fish doesn't always work. Missed bites can trip the release mechanism, then you gotta crank the whole thing back in to re-set it. Or if the release is set too tight, you end up cranking in a ton of resistance with the diver+fish. They're pricey to lose on a stray crab rope or on a reef.

That being said, if you're on a boat with others and want to get your gear down below the shallow-running coho gear, a diver is a good way to do that.

Thanks Clayman!

torpedo weights are also worth looking into as well. the great lakes guys have a lot of success using them and cathing salmon.