Lure color experience

[sbhall]

I need some help making sense out of situation that happened yesterday. I was out fishing yesterday morning between 6:30 and 8:00. The sun was to my back, I’ve learned during the shady areas of this particular lake seem to get me the most bites this time of day. There was not a cloud in the sky and the temps were between 75-80. I started off with a green pumpkin Krackin Craw. The fish that hit were smaller ones. I moved to another spot (still shady & the sun to my back). They wouldn’t bite on the craw so I switched to a Fat Ika, still green pumpkin. The fish were much bigger. I fished the Fat Ika until it was worn completely out. Unfortunately it was my last one if that color. The closet thing I had to green pumpkin was the Watermelon w/red & black flake. I didn’t get another bite the rest of the time I was there.  I don’t think my technique was any different. Is it that much difference to a bass between those 2 colors? 
 

[Ski213]

Seems like sometimes the smallest difference matters. Sometimes it seems like you could put some trebles on a ball cap and catch fish.
 

A couple years ago on one of the local lakes, the fish were all about a watermelon with red flake. You could catch them on the same lure in watermelon with blue flake but the quantity and quality of fish was significantly different. 

[the reel ess]

I get a lot more bites on black/blue craws than any other color unless the water is very clear, which it rarely is here. But I can't seem to buy a bite on black/red,  even when I put one on a black/blue jig. As for your own experience, you showed the bass something they liked and would bite, then from their perspective, you changed it on them. It could also be that you wore the school out, they decided feeding time was over or some other unknown factor.

[sbhall]

Since green pumpkin has been my go to, I haven’t really paid much attention to water clarity and water color. My general thought process has always been green pumpkin unless it’s cloudy and then it’s black/blue. I will pay more attention to color & clarity. I do know there other parts of the lake where the clarity is much better and experiment with watermelon red.   

[Bluebasser86]

I fished a tournament at LOZ where I badly outfished my boater, both of us fishing a Zoom trick worm on the same size shakyhead. I was using green pumpkin/red flake, he was using regular green pumpkin. Was the red flake making that big of difference? Doubtful, he was probably doing something different in his retrieve that was effecting his catch rate, but the red flakes weren't hurting anything.

 

Underwater, watermelon is a more translucent color whereas green pumpkin is more opaque, that could have had some effect on your bite.

[LargeMarge]

Maybe there’s a simpler explanation. First spot had smaller fish on it, second spot had larger fish on it. You wore them out on the second spot and the fish turned off after the morning bite. 
 

Maybe you would have caught even bigger fish at the second spot if you had stuck with the green pumpkin craw ?

[the reel ess]

7 hours ago, Bluebasser86 said:

I fished a tournament at LOZ where I badly outfished my boater, both of us fishing a Zoom trick worm on the same size shakyhead. I was using green pumpkin/red flake, he was using regular green pumpkin. Was the red flake making that big of difference? Doubtful, he was probably doing something different in his retrieve that was effecting his catch rate, but the red flakes weren't hurting anything.

 

Underwater, watermelon is a more translucent color whereas green pumpkin is more opaque, that could have had some effect on your bite.

I've had days where my buddy outfished me using a gold Spot. I was using a gold Rat-L-Trap. The Spot is much deeper gold. This happened more than once before I bought a couple Spots and the disparity disappeared. Anecdotal, maybe, but I feel confidence in the Spot. It could be something else like the number or size of BBs in the Spot. They almost look identical in size and shape. I also tried other color patterns of Trap with very little success while my buddy was killing them.

[Bluebasser86]

1 hour ago, the reel ess said:

I've had days where my buddy outfished me using a gold Spot. I was using a gold Rat-L-Trap. The Spot is much deeper gold. This happened more than once before I bought a couple Spots and the disparity disappeared. Anecdotal, maybe, but I feel confidence in the Spot. It could be something else like the number or size of BBs in the Spot. They almost look identical in size and shape. I also tried other color patterns of Trap with very little success while my buddy was killing them.

CC spots sink slower than a Rattle Trap, that probably has a lot to do with it also.

[the reel ess]

1 hour ago, Bluebasser86 said:

CC spots sink slower than a Rattle Trap, that probably has a lot to do with it also.

Well, the idea was to reel them slowly enough to just tic the top of the grass but not so slowly as to be de-grassing the bait all day long. I was able to do so with the Trap and it's not very deep over most of the lake. It could be the retrieve speed was just right.

[RoLo]

 

It's almost impossible to compare lure colors, because the most important variables, are the least visible.

 

> John shakes his rod-tip lightly as he retrieves, but Bob adds no action...Is anyone watching?

> John is using lighter line than Bob, and his lure runs a little deeper...Is that visible?

> John is using a slower gear ratio than Bob, and his lure moves a little slower...Is that visible?

 

John outfishes Bob 3 to 1, but the reason is blatantly obvious!

John's lure is 'black with red flakes', but Bob's lure is 'brown with green flakes'      DUH

 

Roger

[roadwarrior]

[BigAngus752]

26 minutes ago, RoLo said:

 

It's almost impossible to compare lure colors, because the most important variables, are the least visible.

 

> John shakes his rod-tip lightly as he retrieves, but Bob adds no action...Is anyone watching?

> John is using lighter line than Bob, and his lure runs a little deeper...Is that visible?

> John is using a slower gear ratio than Bob, and his lure moves a little slower...Is that visible?

 

John outfishes Bob 3 to 1, but the reason is blatantly obvious!

John's lure is 'black with red flakes', but Bob's lure is 'brown with green flakes'      DUH

 

Roger

I’ll fish with Bob but John can get the hell out of my boat. 

[OCdockskipper]

I believe the saying goes "Color doesn't matter until it does".

 

That fits for me.  Most days, there are numerous colors that work.  Every now & then, there is one color that obnoxiously outfishes all of the others that you try.

[sbhall]

Too much variation between 2 anglers using different colors. One person using the same lure, fishing the same spot and the only difference is the color would be a better test in my opinion  

[Tennessee Boy]

I’ll mention another explanation that I always bring up because no one else ever mentions it.  
 

Luck

 

Put a blue cap on and flip a coin ten time.  Now put a red cap on and flip the same coin ten times.  If there’s a difference in the number of times the coin lands on heads is it because of the color of your cap?  Same person flipping the coin,  same coin,  it must be the cap since that’s the only thing that changed... right?

[txchaser]

I had an experience this Sunday the fish would not bite a lure with flake in it. And didn't seem to care much about color, but flake was a no-no. And it happened in both bottom and middle of the water column... like a light switch. At least that's the story I'm telling myself, but fishing for for a while and getting no bites and then immediately catching fish after the switch seemed pretty clear. It only took me five hours to figure out what was going on; I knew they were there so it was very frustrating. 

 

Doesn't matter till it does... But I do think in certain lakes or spots they get keyed one something and it is the difference between a fish here or there and lots of bites. My most recent was where the juvenile catfish fry were inky black... and swapping to an otherwise identical chatterbait/zako but in black/blue was rewarded with an immediate bite out of an isolated bit of cover that I was pretty sure was holding fish. It seemed hopeless at the time, but it worked. 

 

About half the time fishing makes me wonder if I have any idea what I'm doing. I suppose that's why I enjoy it so much, 1000's of little details that when they matter they really matter, and the figuring it out process is fun. 

 

[scaleface]

I get a color thats working , I'll wear the bass out with it . All I know is it is working . Right now a spinnerbait with a batfish patterned skirt and some blue strands mixed in is killing it . Dont know if the blue makes any difference or not . I'm also using Blueberry worms . I see know need to change at this time .

[Bankbeater]

I've had this happen to me multiple times.  You put on the same bait, but in a different color, and the bites stop.  Sometimes I think that the color of the bait matches, or is close to, some type of forage in the lake.

[DitchPanda]

On 8/11/2020 at 6:43 AM, LargeMarge said:

Maybe there’s a simpler explanation. First spot had smaller fish on it, second spot had larger fish on it. You wore them out on the second spot and the fish turned off after the morning bite. 
 

Maybe you would have caught even bigger fish at the second spot if you had stuck with the green pumpkin craw ?

This right here. Fish often times group by size so maybe you found a dink school then moved to a spot with quality fish. Also I agree you probably caught the active fish then the bite window was over.

[RoLo]

 

Whenever I hear how much one color dramatically outperformed another color,

the same thought enters my mind. If anglers were colorblind,

it would force them to reach conclusions based on more important variables.

 

 

 

Roger

[sbhall]

18 hours ago, Bankbeater said:

I've had this happen to me multiple times.  You put on the same bait, but in a different color, and the bites stop.  Sometimes I think that the color of the bait matches, or is close to, some type of forage in the lake.

This happened to me yesterday. Green Pumpkin Fat Ika....bite bite bite bite bite. Switched to blue back because I was out of green pumpkin. No bites, then switched to watermelon red flake No bites. Obviously the green pumpkin ika looks like something they feed on. The funny thing is, this particular lake is the only spot that is like this. Another spot I have, love a blue black chatterbait. 
 

None of the local stores (BP, Academy, Dicks nor Cabellas had any Green Pumpkin Fat Ika in stock). I found some online and ordered several bags.