Can someone explain how floating swim baits dive to the right depth or are they mainly used to stay near the surface? I want to try throwing more big baits so I'm trying to gather as much information as possible before I invest.

 

A billed plug of course, is cranked briskly to attain the prescribed running depth

But a floating plug 'without' a diving bill is not used for working deep.

There are also floating plugs with a diving bill that rise upward when paused (that's for another day).

 

On the other hand, sinking lipless swimbaits are graded as to specific gravity,

and calibrated as 'slow-sinking', 'medium-sinking' or 'fast-sinking'

 

After a sinking lipless swimbait is cast, the angler typically waits for the plug to make bottom contact,

or he counts-down to the depth of a suspended school. A slow, steady retrieve is the most popular,

but some anglers like to burn the swimmer periodically, then pause occasionally to reestablish bottom.

 

Roger

 

Floating swimbaits don't dive, they are surface lures that can be waked. Slow sinking swimbaits are just that, slow sinking. ROF swimbaits sink at a Rate Of Fall and sink a specific number of feet per 10 seconds; i.e. ROF 12 = 12 feet in 10 seconds.

Tom

I agree with the previous posters for the most part but there are a few floating lipless swimbaits like the floating version of the  Duo Realis Onimasu that goes subsurface on the retrieve, with the billed baits there are some like the Pat's Perch swimbait that basically fish like a large crankbait. Two of the  most popular billed floating swimbaits would be the MS Slammer and the 3:16 Wake Jr and they primarily fish as surface wake baits but will go a foot or 2 subsurface if cranked in fast . Basically before pulling the trigger make sure you research each bait to see if it will fit the intended application like you would with conventional baits. That's my 2 pennies on this subject .