Custom Painted Lures, Will Is Really Make A Big Difference?

[Brayberry]

I'm curious on everyone thoughts.  Many fisherman, including myself, use custom painted crankbaits, but do the fish really bite them better or is it more of a confidence thing?  I mean, would a KVD Square Bill in Bluegill get a few less bites then a KVD Square Bill with a custom Bluegill paintjob?  I admit, I use custom painted lures, but to me it's a confidence thing, maybe to the fish it's less important, but to me it's a huge boast of confidence.  What do you think?

[rangerjockey]

I like custom painted because I can get the bait exactly like I want it . With that said, I think a good running bait is the most important regardless of color.  I have a old wart that started out as purple fire tiger . That thing caught a load of fish. The fish and the rocks finally wore the paint off.

so, I had Rob McGilvery paint it one of his craw's. It still catches fish just like it did before. I think that bait  just runs right.

[A-Jay]

I fish both stock and some custom painted baits and for me they all produce equally.

 

I think that it makes a difference if you think it makes a difference.

 

A-Jay

[Jigfishn10]

I'm curious on everyone thoughts.  Many fisherman, including myself, use custom painted crankbaits, but do the fish really bite them better or is it more of a confidence thing?  I mean, would a KVD Square Bill in Bluegill get a few less bites then a KVD Square Bill with a custom Bluegill paintjob?  I admit, I use custom painted lures, but to me it's a confidence thing, maybe to the fish it's less important, but to me it's a huge boast of confidence.  What do you think?

I think you answered your own question.

[Sam]

Confidence. It depends on our confidence level.

 

Some guys and gals have to have their own patterns.

 

Others, like me, add a touch of orange to the baits.

 

There are no hard rules in bass fishing. You do what you want to do and have fun doing it.

[WRB]

Some lakes the bass have a preference for specific colors. Example the original ghost minnow Pointer put Lucky Craft in the US market. At the time Lucky Craft didn't offer deep divers, so ghost minnow custom painted deep divers like Norman DD 14 and 22's became hot items because they worked in ghost minnow color.

Custom painted lures today run about $5 per inch.

Tom

PS, Tackle Warehouse at one time was a big brick and motor retailer called Delta Bait and Tackle and they' specialized in custom lures.

[Crestliner2008]

All about what gives you the best confidence in your presentation. Myself, I do not hold that much stock in color as a major factor in success. I believe that depth and speed control is much more important. But it's strictly up to you. I've never invested in custom colors myself and I do O.K..

[ww2farmer]

I fish both stock and some custom painted baits and for me they all produce equally.

 

I think that it makes a difference if you think it makes a difference.

 

A-Jay

What he said..................I'll just fish stock colors, I am too cheap and lazy to send a bunch of stuff off to get painted anyways.

[wnybassman]

I can catch ten bluegills and they will be in ten different colors/shades/patterns.   I am not sure what a custom painted bait would get me.   With my luck, the one bluegill that was colored like my custom bait would have died last week and I will be SOL.   lol

[RoLo]

All about what gives you the best confidence in your presentation. Myself, I do not hold that much stock in color as a major factor in success. I believe that depth and speed control is much more important. But it's strictly up to you. I've never invested in custom colors myself and I do O.K..

 

I have a BIG problem believing that any color will give a non-feeding fish an appetite,

or that any color will take away the appetite of an aggressive predator

1) Color rendition underwater is both illusive and highly changeable according to ambient lighting

2) Time spent worrying about color should be devoted to lure depth, lure choice, retrieve speed, boat position,

cast placement, ad infinitum.

 

Roger

[A-Jay]

 

I have a BIG problem believing that any color will give a non-feeding fish an appetite,

or that any color will take away the appetite of an aggressive predator

1) Color rendition underwater is both illusive and highly changeable according to ambient lighting

2) Time spent worrying about color should be devoted to lure depth, lure choice, retrieve speed, boat position, cast placement, ad infinitum.

 

Roger

 

 

X2 ~ Agreed.

 

But after lure depth, lure choice, retrieve speed, boat position, and cast placement have been considered and met to the best of one's ability;  if and when there are bluegills around I have a fair level of confidence in this one.

 

A-Jay

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ww2farmer]

I have a BIG problem believing that any color will give a non-feeding fish an appetite,

or that any color will take away the appetite of an aggressive predator

1) Color rendition underwater is both illusive and highly changeable according to ambient lighting

2) Time spent worrying about color should be devoted to lure depth, lure choice, retrieve speed, boat position, cast placement, ad infinitum.

 

Roger

Couldn't have said it better myself....................infact I know I couldn't, because I would have probably said.............." LOL at you fools who think a custom and or pretty paint job matter"....but thats just me.

[smalljaw67]

Color only matters when it matters. I never really thought about colors and custom paint and figured it to be a waste of money, just get a color to match the forage and you are good to go. Well, I believed that until I was fishing with a good friend, we were on a body of water that was known to produce when using white lures, I was using a Manns baby one minus in grey ghost and bone with orange belly and were fishing over shallow weed flats. My friend was using a custom painted Manns baby one minus, I knew he had these as this particular bait is killer over these weed flats in early summer here and he had paid a good bit to get these painted and I thought he was nuts. This lake we fish gets moderate pressure, the shallow flats get bombed with baby one minus baits all the time as everyone now knows about this pattern, well within an hour I had 1 fish, he had 9 on his custom painted bait. I was changing baits after he would catch 3 to my zero, and at the end of the day I had 3 fish, all caught on grey ghost, he caught 21 on his custom painted bait, why? I believe that on pressured waters a bait or color that hasn't been seen by the fish will make a difference, the fish get conditioned and a custom paint job just might be the trigger.

[ww2farmer]

Color only matters when it matters. I never really thought about colors and custom paint and figured it to be a waste of money, just get a color to match the forage and you are good to go. Well, I believed that until I was fishing with a good friend, we were on a body of water that was known to produce when using white lures, I was using a Manns baby one minus in grey ghost and bone with orange belly and were fishing over shallow weed flats. My friend was using a custom painted Manns baby one minus, I knew he had these as this particular bait is killer over these weed flats in early summer here and he had paid a good bit to get these painted and I thought he was nuts. This lake we fish gets moderate pressure, the shallow flats get bombed with baby one minus baits all the time as everyone now knows about this pattern, well within an hour I had 1 fish, he had 9 on his custom painted bait. I was changing baits after he would catch 3 to my zero, and at the end of the day I had 3 fish, all caught on grey ghost, he caught 21 on his custom painted bait, why? I believe that on pressured waters a bait or color that hasn't been seen by the fish will make a difference, the fish get conditioned and a custom paint job just might be the trigger.

That's funny right there................and you think it was because of his color choice....ROTFLMAO

[Topwaterspook]

That one sure looks like one of Casey's, Andy.

[wnybassman]

That's funny right there................and you think it was because of his color choice....ROTFLMAO

 

 

I was gonna post, but knew you would, so I refrained from it.   lol

[A-Jay]

That one sure looks like one of Casey's, Andy.

 

 

Good Eye Stitch ~

 

It sure is.

 

A-Jay

[ww2farmer]

I was gonna post, but knew you would, so I refrained from it.   lol

Have we spent that much time in a boat together??? HAHAHA

[RoLo]

X2 ~ Agreed.

But after lure depth, lure choice, retrieve speed, boat position, and cast placement have been considered and met to the best of one's ability;  if and when there are bluegills around I have a fair level of confidence in this one.

A-Jay

 

Point well taken, which leads us to Color 202.

 

When a fishermen catches 3 bass in a row, he's apt to stick to that presentation.

But unless he's fishing in a tournament, by sticking to the same presentation

he's depriving himself of a golden opportunity to learn.

 

For example, you're banging bass on a 'black' fluke, so now is the PERFECT time to switch to a 'white' fluke.

Switching to a 'white' fluke should slow or stop the action, but that will rarely be the case.

The action might slow simply because your color change coincided with a fading bite, but that's easy to confirm.

Simply tie the 'black' fluke back on and the action should resume, but that will rarely be the case.

 

I've been experimenting like this for several years, it makes the game more interesting (my wife thinks I'm nuts).

Anyway, I've found color to be the least influential lure attribute, but color often gets the credit for other variables

that the angler is not even monitoring. As a result, color has very little influence on my level of confidence.

 

Roger

[A-Jay]

Point well taken, which leads us to Color 202.

 

When a fishermen catches 3 bass in a row, he's apt to stick to that presentation.

But unless he's fishing in a tournament, by sticking to the same presentation

he's depriving himself of a golden opportunity to learn.

 

For instance, you're banging bass on a Black fluke, so now is the perfect time to switch to a White fluke.

The action should slow or stop, but that will rarely be the case. The action might slow simply because

your color change coincided with a fading bite, but that's easy to confirm.

Put the Black fluke back ou there and the action should resume, but that will rarely be the case.

 

I've been experimenting like this for several years, I find it keeps the game more interesting (my wife thinks I'm nuts).

Anyway, I've found color to be the least influential lure attribute, but color often gets the credit for another variable

that's not even on the angler's radar screen.

 

Roger

 

 

I hear that -

 

Done this one -  My wife & I  are both fishing 5 inch stick baits,  The bite is pretty steady.  Every time one of us catches a bass, we change colors until there is a fish caught on that color.  Often times you get bite right away, sometimes it takes a while.  We've not found a color that wouldn't get bit.

 

Here's another one - Jerk bait fishing with Dwight H, (you may have heard of him  :c). I can't tell you how many times this happens.  He catches a smb.  I change to the color he's throwing.  He unhooks & releases the fish.  He takes off the color that just caught and puts on a different color, same bait though.  He catches right away. I'm bumming. Sometimes he'll take off the one he just caught on and give it to me, I put it on.  He changes colors.  He catches.  I'm scrambling now . . . . .

 

Maybe it's the motion of the ocean.

 

 

A-Jay

[wnybassman]

 

 

 

but color often gets the credit for another variable that's not even monitored by the angler.

 

 

 

Quote of the year right there.

[wnybassman]

I hear that -

 

Done this one -  My wife & I  are both fishing 5 inch stick baits,  The bite is pretty steady.  Every time one of us catches a bass, we change colors until there is a fish caught on that color.  Often times you get bite right away, sometimes it takes a while.  We've not found a color that wouldn't get bit.

 

Here's another one - Jerk bait fishing with Dwight H, (you may have heard of him  :c). I can't tell you how many times this happens.  He catches a smb.  I change to the color he's throwing.  He unhooks & releases the fish.  He takes off the color that just caught and puts on a different color, same bait though.  He catches right away. I'm bumming. Sometimes he'll take off the one he just caught on and give it to me, I put it on.  He changes colors.  He catches.  I'm scrambling now . . . . .

 

Maybe it's the motion of the ocean.

 

 

A-Jay

 

 

How about this one.    My buddy and I are dragging tubes.   I am catching fairly consistently, he is struggling.    He says it is my bait/line/rod/weight/etc I am using.    I suggest we switch rods.    I catch one within 50 feet on his rig and hand the rod back to him.   

[bigbill]

I purchased many lures at discounted prices that are awesome designs but there colors were blah looking. Plus I added some pike sized lures and sent them all to Terry Clark custom lures and had him work his magic. My only problem is they look so awesome I'm not sure wether to frame them or fish with them. There sitting here in a box till I deceide what to do with them. His work, talent looks great. I turned the dull pike sized lures into big bass lures.

[Maxximus Redneckus]

Nope the more beat and banged up mine are the more they catch...painting customs is just a hobby nothing to do with fishing.IMO

[Raul]

I'm curious on everyone thoughts.  Many fisherman, including myself, use custom painted crankbaits, but do the fish really bite them better or is it more of a confidence thing?  I mean, would a KVD Square Bill in Bluegill get a few less bites then a KVD Square Bill with a custom Bluegill paintjob?  I admit, I use custom painted lures, but to me it's a confidence thing, maybe to the fish it's less important, but to me it's a huge boast of confidence.  What do you think?

 

How about this ? I have a Lucky Craft Moonassault crank that was originally Aurora Craw, now it´s practically stripped of any finish. Do you think it makes a difference, reason why it has no paint is cuz it´s a killa bait, that crank in particular is a killa, I have others and they catch nowhere near that particular crank, it continues to catch fish as well as it did when out of the box. I have many cranks in the same position.

 

I really don´t think it makes much difference, in cranks it has more to do with the little imperfections that alter the action of the bait what makes the difference between one bait and another "identical" one rather than if it´s stock or custom painted.