jrhopkins Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 went out yesterday to do a little smallmouth fishing. i took one of my swimbaits ( 4 1/2" ) along to test the action before painting it. the lure was the pvc material ( white) and you could still see where i had filled the ballast holes. you guessed it, 2 fish! one little guy about 7" and a nice 15" smallie. so i'm thinking the action is what fooled them and not the color although the white showed up in the water like a lightbulb! i could see it coming back quite clearly so i know the fish could see it much better. think i'll do up a few white ones to throw in the tacklebox and not spend the time on a fancy paint job;). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diemai Posted September 19, 2009 Report Share Posted September 19, 2009 @ jrhopkins Had that happen on bare wood(only temporary laquered)crankbaits as well whilst testing them in a local canal . And in fact I have read in many publications , that it would be the action and/or the skills of the angler to work his lure attractively rather than it's color that finally cause the fish to bite that lure . But on the other hand I also won't trust a shiny silver polished spoon in gin clear water , I'd surely tie on one of tarnished brass or copper:huh: ! If I'd hazard a guess , it would be 70% on action and 30% on color , maybe even 75% versus 25% ,........ but still the percentage is still too high to be denied in my opinion:? . As far , as detailing in color patterns goes , I have an old US book "The Complete Book Of Lurecraft" by Russ Mohney , there is an interesting opinion in there : It states as much as it would not be neccessary to have a lure patterned to the finest detail of the real thing , just impressions of these would be fairly enough . There are three pattern variations mentioned , described as "realistic"(finest detailing and resemblance) , "representative"(still quite detailed , but not to the highest grade of realism) and finally "impressionistic"(just sporting the contrasts of f.e. frog ,-and perch patterns ,..... a base color and stripes or spots over it) . I quote a few sentences from that book chapter : "We can achieve the proper contrast in a lure by learning to use color combinations that produce definite contrast patterns when applied . It doesn't matter whether the lure is realistic , representative , or an impression - as long as the proper contrast appears in the pattern . In this example , we have painted a "frog" finish and a "perch" finish in all three styles(means on three equal lures) . It is easy to see(there are sketches shown in the book) that we have enhanced the contrast on all of them in the same way . In pratice , all the three lures work about the same" . good luck:yay: , Dieter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoopa Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 Happened when i was swim testing a few topwaters:lol: Bare wood and I could barely get a cast in without a fish pecking at it, good thing i didnt have hooks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gunnie3035 Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 Action catches fish, paint catches fishermen.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diemai Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 @ spoopa Sorry for little off topic ,........but I'd always mount hooks for testing as well not to get a false result , especially on smaller lures . If during closing time or in a pond , where fishing is not allowed , I'd just rig some papertclips or a piece of wire instead;) ! greetz:yay: , Dieter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muskiefool Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 A wise maker told me once when I said action was the most important thing just how wrong I was, size, shape and weight were equally important, and dictated the action. Chicken before the egg deal I guess. Then it was contrast before paint. I think he was right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hazmail Posted September 20, 2009 Report Share Posted September 20, 2009 (edited) Colour to catch their attention (contrast) - action to confirm it's injured, and size to convince them it's in their target group:?. Not necessarily in that order. pete Edited September 20, 2009 by hazmail Edit text Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spoopa Posted September 21, 2009 Report Share Posted September 21, 2009 @ spoopaSorry for little off topic ,........but I'd always mount hooks for testing as well not to get a false result , especially on smaller lures . If during closing time or in a pond , where fishing is not allowed , I'd just rig some papertclips or a piece of wire instead;) ! greetz:yay: , Dieter Its all right Dieter:) I found that out with the spoons, sometimes they wont swim without a hook on them. Then for my topwaters now i just do a float test and thats enough information to tell me if they will work. Thanks though:yes: Jacob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
