The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 plus 5 letter word DEPTH GAUGE
D
E
P
T
H
G
A
U
G
E
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "means of checking bottom" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case means of checking bottom = depth gauge.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.