Match The Hatch Or Choose Color Based On Water (Crankbait)

[cjam93]

Hey guys so I had a topic a few weeks ago on throwing some lifelike bluegill colors in stained to muddy water. Anyways it got me thinking about crankbait colors in a slightly different way. I know some people believe in matching the hatch. Certain times of the year they will throw a craw pattern, a bluegill pattern, or a shad pattern. Others choose to pick their crankbaits depending on the water clarity on any given day. Lately I have noticed myself being in the second group. I primarily throw chart sexy shad in the water that I fish, but if it gets a little more stained than normal I go to something like chart black back. I maybe wrong but I am under the impression that most baits that chart is a primary color is supposed to resemble things like bluegill or perch and not so much shad. 

 

Anyways I am just wondering which of these groups you fall into and why?

 

This question also came up as I was thinking about picking up some spro crankbaits and their colors are a bit different then the ones I normally throw, and I was trying to figure out which ones I should get so that I could cover most conditions for my local lakes. I usually have 1-3feet of visibility just depending on the different factors of the day. On average I have 1.5-2feet and it is not really muddy, just stained brownish if that makes sense. Any insight into this would be really helpful also! Thanks!

[WIGuide]

I fall into both. Usually I'll pick a bait based on light and water conditions, but there are times bass get keyed in on a certain pray species. It's hard to catch them on a bait that doesn't match the hatch during those times. If I remember correctly, I read something somewhere by Dr. Lauren Hill about how bass can see certain colors better under certain conditions, yet under other conditions those same colors can blend in. I don't know how true it is, but there are plenty of times I've changed colors in the same model of bait and started catching fish. I think in the end it just comes down to experimenting until you find what works. 

[Felix77]

To me it's a little bit of both ...  I primarily use Strike King 1.5's so my suggestions reference their colors.

 

Clear Water - Yellow Perch, Bluegill, Green Gizzard Shad, Chrome blue or black

 

Stained - Chartreuse Perch, Chartreuse Baitfish, Neon Bluegill, Gold/Black back, sexy shad

 

Muddy - Chartreuse/Black back, Firetiger

 

 

Early spring and late fall Perch colors seem to be more dominant.  Any other time of the year you can't go wrong with bluegill, whites, chrome or gold.

 

 

Hope this helps.

[ww2farmer]

This is how I do it :

Clear water : bluegill, perch, and natural looking crawdad colors

Stained water: bright crawdad colors (like with chart or orange belly) chart sexy shad, chart blue back, and rootbeer.

Does it matter??? Idk.... I have caught fish in clear water on the obnoxious colors, and fish in stained water on natural colors..... Then you have the early spring phenomenon of them biting red craw colors no matter what the water clarity.

[AK-Jax86]

Match the hatch

[bigbill]

What he said above.

 

Both we have to adjust to the conditions at the time and not knowing what colors the bass can see at the time I try them all. Not knowing the conditions in the deeper water never leave out the brighter colors and firetiger. For a good crank in natural bait colors I use the Norman thin N. Cast it out and twitch it like a wounded bait fish in the shallows. In low light or muddy water throw the chartreuse killer.

[Raul]

I don´t believe in matching anything, period.

 

The waters I fish have no shad, shad patterned baits catch fish in those waters, none of the waters I fish has any species of trout, trout patterned/colored baits catch fish in those waters, perch ? well, guess what ?

 

Bass do not need to see a bait in order to find it

 

Halfways into the rainy season down here the lakes are almost plowable on how muddy they are, the rain has washed all kind of stuff into them so the visibility is extremely por, bass simply can´t see the bait yet they find it, of course there are some "rules" as long as it comes to selecting your baits:

 

1.- Make it loud ( rattles ) not a rule but a suggestion

2.- Make it thumpy ( vibration ), it doesn´t matter what bait, just make it shure it emits vibrations

3.- Make it shiny, they may not see the color but metal flaked, metal foiled, chromed anything that flashes has greater possibilities of being seen.

4.- Large hydrodynamic signature ( fat )

[cjam93]

That makes a lot of sense! Thanks everyone for the detailed responses!

[hpugh1968]

if you know that they eat in a lake, matching the hatch is the way to go with clear water... always!!! consider when your fishery starts to get more stained (or muddy)... your water column you will be fishing will change with excessive stain moving to what we call chocolate milk (muddy)... the closer you get to "muddy" the shallower the fish will be and in most cases, the tighter to cover the fish will be... at that point, i use Chart/black or solid black with a good rattle... in "stained (1-2 ft visibility), i still like chart/black back but also i will try homer, citrus shad, and if it is more towards that 2 ft, i will even opt to the fire tiger...  Either way... with visibility falling towards the muddy spectrum, it is never a bad idea to use a bait with a rattle or even opt to flat sided baits that push a lot of water.  if that doesn't work for me... i try these same bait colors in a larger size to prompt a bigger presence and larger profile...  if that doesn't work, i abandon crank baits all together and opt for a bigger / slower presentation... large profile soft plastics or bigger swim baits...  I fish southern lakes in the Mississippi delta, and the above tips always work for me...

[sully420]

Ive had great success using whatever everyone else isn't. For example on one of my favorite lakes and in minnesota in general people love to throw chartreuse spinner baits and bladed jigs. I started throwing green pumpkin skirted spinners and bladed jigs and its like the bass never seem them. Sometimes you match the hatch sometimes something diffrent make all the difference.

[ratherbfishin1]

9 minutes ago, sully420 said:

Ive had great success using whatever everyone else isn't. For example on one of my favorite lakes and in minnesota in general people love to throw chartreuse spinner baits and bladed jigs. I started throwing green pumpkin skirted spinners and bladed jigs and its like the bass never seem them. Sometimes you match the hatch sometimes something diffrent make all the difference.

Same, when I go to a pressured lake I never start with a Green Pumpkin senko, sexy shad squarebill, or like you said chartreuse spinnerbaits.  I love fishing senkos in pressured lakes but I've found I catch a whole lot more on a t-rigged black with blue flake senko with a blue tail than  a green pumpkin.

[WRB]

If I know the bass are feeding on shad, silver/pearl white with or without chartreuse and green/blue back is that's the colors to use, crawdads dark red or brown with black back works good. Crankbaits can be additive so I have learned to reduce color choices and catch lots of bass on those mentioned.

Crankbaits when moving fast don't swim or look like any baitfish and put out a lot of vibrations with hooks banging with or without rattles, the bass know it there regardless of the water clarity or at night.

Tom

[Cgolf]

If I am being lazy I would just toss firetiger all the time as it loosely represents a bluegill, pumpkinseed, and perch.

 

Main Clear water colors - Bluegill, orange craw, firetiger, sexy shad, Ayu (worked on a spinbait last year going to try it in other cranks)

 

Main Dirty water colors - Gold, chartreuse blue back, and firetiger

 

Looking at that short list trying to figure out why I carry so many colors

[fishwizzard]

I am just getting into cranks and to keep myself sane I only use two colors per style.  First I take a bright one, either Chart/Black or Blue Chrome, and a natural or clear color, the SK "Clearwater Minnow" being a favorite.  

 

I start with whatever one matches the water conditions, but if I am not getting bit I switch up.  

[scaleface]

The deeper I go the brighter my choice . I like fire tiger and sexy shad a lot   on deep baits . Chartreuse Sexy Shad is a color I'm   growing fond of .  But I stay with what is hot for me . One year I killed it on a Bomber Model A in Baby Bass and used it pretty much every trip .. The perch colored Fat Rap has caught so many fish for me that I have  a hard time throwing another color .