For the last couple years i have faithfully thrown red/orange baits here in Central North Carolina (Shearon Harris/Jordan Lake) during winter and early spring with minimal success.  Seems natural shad patterns/colors and green pumpkin/black & blue are the baits that work for me now too.  Id say in the last 2 years i have caught 3-4 fish on red crankbaits and a few on “spring craw” that has a dark orange/brown back that transitions to a yellow belly. Id same im averaging $50 per fish. Do some fisheries just not respond to these “winter/spring colors”?

I rarely get bit on red in the lakes near me on Ohio yet somehow more red baits keep getting added to my collection…

I have never had luck with red crankbaits on any of the lakes I fish. Red is however one of my favorite colors on the river chasing smallmouths.

Wait for an exceptional pre spawn day when you're throwing your favorite flatside crank, lipless, blade, chatterbait in the Shad color, but replace it with a red version of the exact same bait.   This will establish the confidence factor, then you'll throw them more and realize over time they produce less but bigger fish.  

 

This has been my personal observations on the topic.   

 

You're not tying on a red bait to get a bunch of bites although that can happen, you're tying them on because you're looking for the bigger fish imho, the craw eaters.   

 

 

I like red when it's muddy as all get out. I predict I will be tying red on this Thursday after it rains for a couple days straight!

 

Red can work when it's clear, but I find it's a very effective color when it's very poor visibility.

 

For the record I fish central NC around the tri city area.

The only red bait I ever caught a fish with is the old Bomber 7A crankbait. Never caught anything on other red crankbaits. I have caught some on various brownish orange crankbaits.

I have a handful of red plastics that never catch fish. I do have good luck on a large red lizard, though. We have red and black/blue salamanders all around my area. That may be why, but it's just a guess. 

Red is popular in spring due to the molten season for craws but I personally find that red is more inticicing for small mouth bass.

Lots of river fisherman I know throw Red lipless and Divers in early spring for  smallmouth but Red doesn't appear as appealing for largemouth bass. IMO 

Orange and brown is my go to color for jigs prespawn for LM.

1 hour ago, Pat Brown said:

I like red when it's muddy as all get out. I predict I will be tying red on this Thursday after it rains for a couple days straight!

 

Red can work when it's clear, but I find it's a very effective color when it's very poor visibility.

 

For the record I fish central NC around the tri city area.

I will say this Shearon Harris was bery clear yesterday 

I’ve done pretty well with red and orange. Both largemouth and smallmouth.

 

I bought a special edition orange tiger stripes pattern mega bass jerkbait and did have a single bite on it last season. Go figure.

I firmly believe that some colors on some fisheries just aren't very effective.

 

That has been my experience.

 

And red is one of those here.

3 hours ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

You're not tying on a red bait to get a bunch of bites although that can happen, you're tying them on because you're looking for the bigger fish imho, the craw eaters.   

This is the real deal where I fish. Now when we get to pre spawn I get more bites with a suspending jerkbait. The red baits will still catch but not as strongly. When spawn is almost over that red craw color is the best thing again 20 yards away from the spawn beds. And all through the center of the pond. Then it just stops and I change up to something else to get bit.

3 hours ago, Pat Brown said:

I like red when it's muddy as all get out. I predict I will be tying red on this Thursday after it rains for a couple days straight!

 

Red can work when it's clear, but I find it's a very effective color when it's very poor visibility.

 

For the record I fish central NC around the tri city area.

I fish red and orange when the water is murky also.  It doesn't matter what time of year.

Have caught one 6.5# bass on a red Chatterbait Minimax with matching powerstinger trailer, and I had a month where the orange pumpkin green flake senko was getting demolished. The same color ned bait still gets hit sometimes. But that's been about the extent of it for me. I kind of want to try a bright red one knocker spook

I throw a red worm on Canada Day 

Yeah I don't even like red when it's stained.  I'm talking chocolate milk, so I can see how some fisheries it would never get used.  I'd suggest a green pumpkin craw crankbait with some transparency for those fisheries where they're eating bream and possibly crawdads but the water never gets less than 2 ft of vis.

I've never had a bunch of luck with red crank baits with the exception of some of the biggest Cats I've caught Bass fishing.    I have had good luck with soft plastics with some red, as well as jigs and spinnerbaits with a touch of red in the skirt.  I saw a study a million years ago about different colors and water clarity.  Red was the first color to fade away, at least with whatever camera was used in the study.   Clear baits work at times, perhaps red is like clear in muddy water.  

 

I used to not believe color made much difference at all.  Last year I had been catching a BUNCH of Bass with a DT6 that was Helsinki Shad color.  All of a sudden that bite stopped.   I was catching a few Bass on bladed jigs, worms ect but none on cranks including OG4 in Helsinki Shad and a Little John 50 in Nasty Shad color.   Mrs B and myself were going on vacation.   Being balsa DT6's are kinda fragile and I was running low so I wanted plenty for a week of fishing.  The local tackle shop I get them from was out of Helsinki Shad so I bought a handful in Live River Shad.  Bass were basically jumping into the boat to get the new color.   We caught well over a hundred on that vacation(really good for us) including 36 in one day.  

 

I've tried to be more open minded regarding colors since then.  I talked to the Lake Wylie hammer one night before a tournament.  (He wins all the tourneys there)  He mentioned the DT6 bite dying.   I gave him a couple Live River Shad Dt's.  He won the tournament that night....but he wins most of them anyway.   

Color matters in predictable AND unpredictable ways sometimes and sometimes it doesn't matter.  The key is being aware of times when you need to tie a certain color on and why IMHO.

 

I tie on colors more based on conditions than anything.

 

When the water is clear I want a clear bait.  Especially if the sun is burning bright.

 

When it's dirty I want more opacity and brighter hues.  Sky conditions and especially wind play a big role but I will throw lipless crankbaits on bluebird skies without so much as a breeze if the water is stained.

 

There's a lot of room in between and variations on baits for those situations.

 

I find it absolutely does matter especially if your water clarity fluctuates a lot.

12 hours ago, Huckfinn38 said:

Do some fisheries just not respond to these “winter/spring colors”?

 

8 hours ago, RRocket said:

I firmly believe that some colors on some fisheries just aren't very effective.

 

Just because Joe Pro says throw this color doesn't mean it will work everywhere.

 

Red, orange, with chartreuse is killer on Sam Rayburn & Toledo Bend, not so much in other waters around the region.

I throw red traps all year long. My buddy throws a bright orange trap that he caught his pb on all the time.

Both red and orange are effective on the Tennessee River Reservoirs.

 

1 hour ago, Catt said:

 

 

Just because Joe Pro says throw this color doesn't mean it will work everywhere.

 

 

Well I don't listen to Joe Pro, whoever that is. 

 

But some general colors that are widely regarded just didn't work as well here.

 

YMMV.

I never had much luck with red and orange baits. My lone exception is I use to have some orange Uncle Josh pork frogs and they worked well on a black jig in early , muddy water.

Quote

So what made red such a hot color at that tournament? My hunch – and it’s strictly a hunch – is that [Lake] Martin has a lot of red clay points and bottom. As I think about that, I’ve noticed that red has been a good color choice on other lakes I’ve fished with red clay bottoms.

 

Nature’s critters have the innate ability to blend in with their surroundings. So, if there is a lot of red clay in a lake, it makes sense that fish instinctively recognize something that’s red and moving is likely a meal.

 

When fishing red baits this time of year it’s critical to make sure your bait is bouncing along the bottom to emulate crawfish.

 

-KVD https://kevinvandam.com/the-mystery-of-red-crankbaits/

 

Got clay? @Huckfinn38

I caught these 2 bass on a red Spro Little John and a red Rattle Trap