lure color doesn't make any difference, right?

[ssaamm]

Was drop-shotting for bass the other night. They were hitting my brownish chigger craw w/ a little green flake very well. A fish ripped one of the claws off so I replaced it with a purple bait of the same shape. No bites for a half hour. Put the brownish one back on, and the bass turned on again. Coincidence?? Who knows. The lake is clear, but not gin clear. I've have never thought that color is that big of a deal unless you're throwing some obnoxious clown color in a super clear lake. Just an observation. Feel free to chime in. I would think that drop-shotting would get Dietz attention. Have a good night, Sam

[UofMBASS]

In my experience, drop-shotting in clear/clearish water calls for more natural colors. Most of the time I will always start with a small green pumpkin finesse worm.

[RK]

I'm 100% convinced that color matters. Except for all the times when it doesn't. The problem is telling which is which. I try really, really hard not to get wound around the axle with color, but it isn't easy.

I think with reaction baits like cranks, it's a little less critical. Fish see a general shape and color and react. I basically carry 4 crankbait colors, with only a couple oddball variations to account for dirty water, blooms, etc,. I really only carry 3 spinnerbait and topwater colors. Maybe 5 skirted jig colors (I consider them a reaction bait).

Plastics? My Lord... I'm pretty good about worms, creatures, and trailers. Grubs and drop shot baits get ugly, especially for smallmouths. Smallies can be as selective as trout, but for totally random (to my perception) reasons. I've had days where one shade of grub would outfish others 5-1. One memorable occasion, I let my wife use the hot color for the day, while I threw almost every other color in my box, including identical brand grubs in different colors, and she *throttled* me, from the back of the boat. I've watched one smallie after another ignore a green pumpkin drop shot bait and smoke an identical bait with a little metal flake, or hit a translucent green but refuse to touch an opaque bait in a similar shade.

I have some rules of thumb I follow to get started, and most days I don't have to go past that, but if I'm getting bumps, short hits, or just not getting what I think I should, color is one of the things I start tweaking.

All I can say is I'd be a lot happier if fish were color blind like deer...

RK

[goblueM]

I'm 100% convinced that color matters. Except for all the times when it doesn't.

I think with reaction baits like cranks, it's a little less critical. Fish see a general shape and color and react. I basically carry 4 crankbait colors, with only a couple oddball variations to account for dirty water, blooms, etc,. I really only carry 3 spinnerbait and topwater colors. Maybe 5 skirted jig colors (I consider them a reaction bait).

Plastics? My Lord...

RK

as always RK, you said what I wanted to but much more eloquently and with a lot more detail

I think for reaction baits like cranks, the profile, vibration, and depth are far more important considerations than color. But when you go with finesse lures and are fishing slow, the color becomes paramount (but like you said, except for all those times when it isn't)

[Cecil]

Im a bit of a color nut. I do think color shade (light/dark/bright) matters more, but I like to tweak inside of that a lot too...

[serpent]

This past weekend my dad was out fishing me. Same lure different color. His had red flake in it, mine didn't. I switched to different color with red flake in it and started catching them.

[Deitz Dittrich]

I dont like to think that it matters, but have seen too many instances that it seem to have. I try and stay as natural as possible...And often worry more about presentation than color, but if I am not getting bit, you bet I will change color if I know they are there.

[HellaBass]

I've always said, doesn't matter what color you use, as long as its Green Pumpkin, LOL

[RK]

I've always said, doesn't matter what color you use, as long as its Green Pumpkin, LOL

Haha... I always say no colors work all the time...except watermelon and smoke.

[ANYFISH2]

Huh, For me, from here in Randall and north to PR/Walker, I fish Red shad 95% time, the other 5% is whatever else I have after running out of Red shad!