What is your best or favorite Deepwater tactic for summer fishing. I want to get more into this and need a little info. It is drop shot, Carolina rig, football jig, deep cranking or somthing else. I have the equipment with side scan and a minn Kota spot lock motor so I'm ready. I just need to man up and stay out there searching and not go and beat the banks like I always do if I don't have any success. Some guys just are natural deep water fisherman. I stink at it. Any info is appreciated.

Favorite deep water techniques

Texas Rigged plastics & Jig-n-Craw

Tip #1: map study

I spend most of my time on the water chasing bronzebacks in the great lakes.  By far my favorite deep water technique is the drop shot as it is very easy to fish a variety of depths unlike a crankbait.

 

Catt is right the key to finding fish off shore is map study.  It is quite easy to use navionics to identify points and dropoffs and then run them until you mark fish. To gain confidence in fishing off shore I would throw a bait that you have confidence in beating the bank just in its deeper version.  If you have confidence with shallow square bills throw a deep crank, if your confidence is in flippin jigs then throw a jig.

im the same way buddy. i recently got a boat so i really got to expand my fishing and the only way to catch them in this lake in day time is deep water and i hate it lol but im learning.

I love to fish dropshot. It has been the most successful method for me for going for deep water bass. You really need to study your electronics and maps to find drop offs and points.

It's hard to beat a dropshot especially over here in southern california.  

43+ years on Toledo Bend & I still have a paper map layed out on my desk that I study daily. This map was made in 1958 before the lake was flooded it shows things not found on any electronics map.

Paper maps can be obtained for almost any man- made lake if you are willing to look. Even for natural lakes some older paper maps are quite detailed.

Bassinguytom, do you fish natural lakes or man made impoundments?

Tom

They are man made lakes.

10 inch worm.

Drop shot for me. But as has been said, you need to read your electronics well and look not just for good looking structure, but those structures which have bait associating to it.

OK, then maps are essential tools, sonar maps like Navonics are very helpful to use as a search tool to mark way points on or off the water.

Deep is relative to the lake you fish, the type of structure, cover. The older paper maps or topographic area maps before the lake was formed can have buildings (foundations), bridges, roads, culverts, orchards, etc, now covered with water. Then the things that are added when the lake is constructed and anglers add as habitate.

During the summer period most deep structured lakes stratify into layers of water temperature, the layer known as the thermocline becomes important to locate, again your sonar unit can determine that depth.

Fishing too deep is just as non productive as fishing in the wrong locations.

Lots to learn.

Best tactic is locate bait and bass before you start fishing. When you know what depth the deep water life zone is, what prey the bass are targeting, it's a lot easier to select what lures and presentation are effective.

Tom

Some great advice here(especially, as usual, WRB). "Find the themocline". To answer your question though, my favorite technique by far is deep cranking. I also use swimbaits, and this season, for the first time, big spoons(replaced the drop shot.).

Texas rig for me. I also have a highly detailed map of Mark Twain , made when they were doing a study . It shows every building , out building , fence... It's about 40 pages and I had to color each page in with a highlihhter .

If it weren't for the fatigue factor, notice I didn't say age, I'd deep crank the majority of deep structure. I switch it up with a C-rig when the old arm and wrist start to give out.  One of the options I used for years was C-rigging a shallow crank. Now I just use a Booyah Boo Rig and a crappie sized crank or a Bandit 100 series.  Little cranks down deep are very rarely seen and the big girls love 'em more that a 12in. worm. The 1/2oz. rig will get down and stay down and unlike deep diving cranks you can fish it in 12ft. of water or 25 without changing baits.

Football jig or shakyhead