up river around nebraska you might have much less current than we do here. I fish the last 100 miles of the river so you are much closer to the first dam (Gavin's point) on the missouri than I am! 1oz of weight will just flutter in the current here with out adding any bait. in the summer, I use 4oz slip sinkers just for fishing channel cats in the slow water and side chutes. it takes this much weight to keep your lines from drifting together and getting tangled. I don't usually use 18+ oz's but there are times when the blue cats are staged in the fastest currents in the river, and are hitting HUGE baits, like a whole 16" skipjack or asian carp, and it takes some serious lead to hold a bait like that right where ya want it. if you don't have enough lead, the current will slowly drag your bait and weight around and it won't be long before your rig falls in the crack of a rock or under a log, then your hung up and that gets expensive!