Universal Drift Rig

 Ray Hansen’s drift fishing rig for basins and deep water flats when chasing panfish.

PS While this speaks to, "panfish," it can also be down-, or -up sized, with the weight adjusted as needed to stay in close contact with the bottom. A bottom rigged weight using a 3-way swivel (aka Wolf River Rig) is another good option, keeping the lure 1-2 feet off the bottom. Overall, it's  also a good presentation for slow trolling, like with a trolling motor.

👉 A presentation that allows you to cover lots of water and work the best zone (the bottom) thoroughly is a good choice in mid to late fall. There is one rig I tie up for use with drift-fishing passes that really helps me locate fish during the late season. I've used it mainly to find schools of white bass, but other panfish species can be taken in this manner, along with some walleyes and largemouth bass.

👉 This simple drift rig is tied by passing your line through a 1/4 to 3/8-ounce bullet-shaped slip-sinker, tying a small barrel swivel as a stopper, then adding an 18 to 24-inch leader and a size 4 or 6 "Tru-Turn" brand long-shank hook. 

👉 The dressing for this rig is a curlytail plastic grub about 2 inches in length. I generally use 8-lb. test line off the reel and a 6-lb. test leader on this rig.

👉 The rig is allowed to sink down and contact bottom, then my spinning reel is engaged. Targets for fall drift-fishing passes will be long drop-offs, points of land, the deeper portions of large flats, or any other lengthy piece of bottom structure with a relatively clean bottom.

👉 While drifting along, the sinker will drag bottom and hang up slightly every few feet. As the weight pulls free, it causes the grub to shoot forward, then pause as the sinker hits bottom again. It is this stop-start action that triggers fish and the hits are usually quite hard.

Source: Fishing Facts