When to change color vs lure

[Functional]

Might be showing some inexperience here but are there any triggers that would make you change the color of your lure vs changing the type of lure all together?

 

There has been instances where a color change has gotten me fish immediately and others where I'd change from say a shaky head to a jig and gotten better bites. My problem is I never know which to start off with and not "waste time". For instance in my area white, black/blue, green pumpkin and purple could all be productive...if I don't get bit on a shaky head in say green pumpkin is there something that should trigger me to swap colors or just tie on something else?

 

I'm assuming getting better at reading water/weather and knowing what to throw will be the answer but figured I'd ask.

[WRB]

Lures are a trail and error not a waste of time to learn what the bass react to.

Colors are usually not the major factor as depth and action is. If the bass bump or barely hook using the right lure, then change colors to see if they engulf it. 

Tom

[NavyVet1204]

Agreed with the above poster. Color only plays a small factor. 

[Deleted account]

I change lures when fish or conditions dictate, I change color when I run out of one.

[Jig Man]

It isn’t always the case about color.  I’ve seen many times when they would take most colors and also seen the time when they only really wanted a specific one.  That is why I have many setups for the techniques that I use.  I can have multiples with different colors rigged up.

[Kenny Yi]

I commit to a color based on the conditions (to make it simple for my dumb brain), then interchange lures with that color system. 

 

I guess, in a tournament for example, if I see someone catching on a different color I might change, but more often then not the lure matters more. 

[ironbjorn]

No bites = lure

 

Short strikes = color

[geo g]

Color is not as major factor as other variables.  Location, and action are much more important.  I  will say as a general rule, in low light and heavy stained water I will go with dark colors like black and junebug.  On sunny days, and clear water, I will go with natural colors like watermelon, green pumpkin, and shad colors.  

[LCG]

Water color dictates color for me. Stained to muddy = Junebug, clear to stained = watermelon red. With lures stained to muddy = chartuesse and white, black and blue, firetiger. In clear water more the color of the forage, more natural colors. 

 

Weather dictates what Lure or plastic I fish. Hot summer day, not a cloud in the sky, no wind = finness, Ned, weightless worm. Clouds, a little wind = spinnerbaits, chatterbaits, texas rigged brush hog, Beaver style baits. I adjust as conditions dictate. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. 

 

I look for wood, brush, overhanging trees, Rocky areas, and weed lines. 

[Functional]

Sounds good. Gives me a bit more confidence. I can match the colors to water clarity and try to stay deeper with bright clear skies etc.

 

The short strike is something I hadn't thought to be a trigger to try a new color. Always assumed it was retrieval speed or just a poor strike. 

 

Didn't mean experimenting was a waste of time but if there were some signals I didn't know to look for it could help cut the process time down. 

[Jmurphy87]

Also in my limited experience like on Monday, I was fishing weightless worms. First was a zoom 7 inch speed worm in California 420 color. The water was heavily stained low visibility, they were absolutely destroying it. I got snagged on a tree cause I run my hook exposed a little bit. I decided to try a purple senko next. I caught a fish after a lot more effort and time, senko flew off while bringing the fish in so back to the speed worm and they were going crazy again. So what I learned was that both of the colors were good for water clarity but the speed worm vibrated when fished the same way so that helped them locate it a little bit easier. So in the end I figured out what they wanted that day, sometimes it’s the little things we overlook that are the difference between catching 8 fish or just one. I hope this helps, have a good night.

[CrankFate]

I don’t know. Because it’s never easy if you aren’t getting any bites in the first place. My take on color, that is most consistent, is sometimes you need a light color belly no matter what color you are fishing. I don’t know if it’s contrast or most food has a lighter colored belly. But somehow it can make the difference even in water I would think the fish are blind in. 

[scaleface]

Usually I make a lot of changes throughout a days fishing . Color , action , size , technique , lures , location... and I dont have a rule for any of it . Just try to make good decisions .

[Michigander]

I usually change color if I'm getting a lot of followers but no takers.

[Mobasser]

This is slightly off topic here, but don't overlook size over color. Sometimes, color may not matter at all, but switching to a smaller bait can work. If your not getting any action on one bait, try a bigger or smaller one before you move on.

[Mike L]

The only time I’ll keep using the same bait and just change color, is for short strikes and followers. But I don’t spend much time doing it. 
 

 

 

 

 

Mike

[Bankc]

I change color based on visibility.  So if the water is stained or muddy, or if the sky is dark and cloudy, I might go with a higher contrast lure.  If the water is clear, I might choose something more natural, or if the sun is bright, I might go with something more shiny.  

 

I change lures when the fish don't bite what I'm throwing. 

 

I try to not get too caught up in colors, as I don't want to spend all day tying on lures.  And I usually won't cycle through sizes either.  I'll try a spinnerbait, and if that doesn't work, I'll go on to something completely different before switching out sizes, colors, or blade designs.  Then, if I notice a pattern, like they're keying in on smaller lures that make more noise, I might go back to the spinnerbait, but this time grab a smaller one with Colorado blades.  I want my first several lure swaps to be drastic ones until I start to pick up patterns.  Then I'll narrow things down with more minor changes.

[papajoe222]

I'll change presentation before changing color if I'm getting short strikes, or follows. Many times, a change in direction (up, down, left, or right) or speed is all it takes. I approach changing color only after that, or switching to a lure with a different profile (flat sided crank to a fat one, or minnow profile).

[king fisher]

Depends on what the bass are eating.  If the bait is very large or very small and no obvious outstanding color characteristics, then size would be my main concern.

     If what they are eating swims very fast, on the surface as opposed to slowly crawling on the bottom, and is varied in size and color, than presentation would be my biggest concern.

    Color would only be the number one factor if the baits color is the first thing I notice while looking at it.  If I see a crawdad and the first thing I notice is bright red claws, or a bright blue back, there is a good chance that is the first thing a bass notices too and will use that color to locate and catch his food.  Maybe a bait fish has a certain bright flash that catches the eye more than the way it swims, then color could be the dominant factor.

     Most of the time the order of importance for me with all species of fish, are.

1 Location

2 depth

3 presentation,- speed and cadence of retrieve, presenting bait at in the correct positing  in water column

4 size,

5 sound 

6 color

7 scent.  Can be higher on the list depending on species of fish.

     I have seen fish come from far away, change depth, hit the bait no matter how fast or slow, and not care if it is big or small, as long as it was the right color.  Those times are rare, but can happen.

   I would recommend making changes in type of lure, and presentation first, then start trying different sizes and colors, once you find out where the bass, are, and what mood they are in.

 

[Catt]

On 5/26/2021 at 1:10 PM, Jig Man said:

It isn’t always the case about color.  I’ve seen many times when they would take most colors and also seen the time when they only really wanted a specific one.  That is why I have many setups for the techniques that I use.  I can have multiples with different colors rigged up.

 

Exactly ?

 

I've seen times when color made absolutely no difference, I've seen times when color made all the difference, & I've seen times when I had to constantly change color to get bit.

 

I've seen this happen with all types of lures but especially with plastics.

 

Right now my hottest plastics are a Senko, Vltra Vibe Speed Craw, & Vltra Vibe Speed Worm all in white with a minimum of chartreuse.

 

Throw anything else to get skunked 

[Functional]

Great to read these responses. I'll typically change lure before color as well but a recent experience has me wondering and sparked the thread. I was throwing a weightless paddle tail fluke in green pumpkin with black flake and had zero reaction.  For the hell of it I threw on a green pumpkin with red flake and fished the same stretch of drop-off/shore and caught 3 and lost 1. Never would have thought such a small change would net that big a difference. Sounds like that may have been chance but again that's why I started this thread. 

 

One of the few times I've seen most everyone have the same approach haha.

[txchaser]

14 hours ago, Functional said:

Great to read these responses. I'll typically change lure before color as well but a recent experience has me wondering and sparked the thread. I was throwing a weightless paddle tail fluke in green pumpkin with black flake and had zero reaction.  For the hell of it I threw on a green pumpkin with red flake and fished the same stretch of drop-off/shore and caught 3 and lost 1. Never would have thought such a small change would net that big a difference. Sounds like that may have been chance but again that's why I started this thread. 

 

One of the few times I've seen most everyone have the same approach haha.

I think flake (shiny flake not black) might be it's own decision as a different one than color. First saw this on a day where it was sunny and I could just not get on fish at all. As soon as I changed to no flake I immediately started catching, and this was true mid-column and on the bottom.

[Catt]

Somethings to ponder

 

What is the difference between a "normal" shad color & Sexy Shad. Sexy Shad has a chartreuse streak down the side, simple change yet KVD swears by it.

 

Jason Christie loves spinnerbaits as long as the head is red. In his videos about family fishing secrets it's color.

 

Greg Hackney is notorious for fine tuning colors to match the food source exactly.

 

Yet the "Pros" teach keep colors simple...really!

[A-Jay]

On 5/26/2021 at 1:30 PM, Functional said:

Might be showing some inexperience here but are there any triggers that would make you change the color of your lure vs changing the type of lure all together?

 

 

Bait color has been a rabbit hole I've gone way down, came out of and then gone back down again, many times.  As mentioned here all ready, doesn't seem to matter, until it does.

 

  There's two concepts that I follow when selecting bait color /pattern with baits that are being presented on or near the bottom in particular.  I either want the bait to be close to or MATCH the color / shade of whatever the bottom is I'm fishing

OR  

 I’ll go with a color pattern that is WILDLY different - Like Clown. 

When a bait is 'traveling' up off the bottom and perhaps 'through' soft cover, same deal applies for me.

So I want my bait to either appear like it’s trying to hide / blend in or standing out badly, and I do prefer no middle ground.  

  In the clear waters I fish, Perch or a 'clear/glass’ perch works over darker bottoms, Ayu works in the sun over sand, and when the fish are truly suspending, I use a glass minnow, smelt type deal. 

So that kind of simplifies it a little at least.   

  At times a some flash is a good thing, like chrome or gold in slightly colored water, other times it may not be the best choice. 

I also believe that light level plays a significant role here as well. 

Brilliant sunshine usually calls for something a little more subtle / toned down, whereas cloudy or overcast days, see me reaching for a darker or solid color patterned bait. 

Topwater seems to be it's own separate yet somewhat similar deal.

My preference here is selected based mostly on the type of sky above.

Either way, I'm considering the baits silhouette against the water's surface & the sky vs the bottom color. 

Fish Hard

A-Jay

 

 

[gim]

On 5/27/2021 at 12:30 PM, Bankc said:

I change color based on visibility.  So if the water is stained or muddy, or if the sky is dark and cloudy, I might go with a higher contrast lure.  If the water is clear, I might choose something more natural, or if the sun is bright, I might go with something more shiny. 

This is how I approach it too. Two items affect the color I use: the clarity of the water, and the current conditions (like if it’s sunny and bright, or cloudy, or at night, etc). I prefer more natural colors in clear or bright conditions, and brighter or flashier colors in murky water. At night I like a dark colored lure like a black spinner bait with a big thumping blade.