My buddy insists they are, I’ve only ever used GP. What color/size do you find produces best?

GP Black flake 3 inch 

I've fished all colors and haven't noticed any real difference. I'm sure in some instances different color flake would make some degree of difference, but you're really splitting hairs at that point.

I’ve had more success with bluegill or PB&J than anything else in the river. 
 

To be honest, I think my lifetime numbers anywhere on green pumpkin are in the low single digits. 

Green pumpkin with black and purple work great on Table Rock pre spawn.  Post spawn they aren’t any better than green pumpkin with just black flake.

2 hours ago, ElGuapo928 said:

I’ve had more success with bluegill or PB&J than anything else in the river. 
 

To be honest, I think my lifetime numbers anywhere on green pumpkin are in the low single digits. 

Interesting, for any plastics or just tube?

Yes, except when they aren’t. YMMV

I’ve never found the color of baits makes much difference in a river. Because of the current and general lack of abundant food in rivers, if a bass wants to eat, he’s not going to pass up an easy meal just because it has/ doesn’t have a specific color. He will let a bait go by that isn’t within his strike zone, or it’s not where he can see it because you didn’t put it in the right place. 

For soft plastics, Yes! I thought I was the only one who thought so. In the last couple of years, I found that dark color soft plastics with purple flakes, or brown jig skirts with a few purple strands, are quite effective for smallies, not just for June or summer months, but spring and fall as well. My guess is they might have seen too many GP or plain brown jigs.

 

For hard baits, like jerkbaits or topwaters, purple color isn't that effective though. My most productive jerkbait colors are still metallic, white, or transparent, depending on water clarity and seasons.

2 hours ago, newapti5 said:

For soft plastics, Yes! I thought I was the only one who thought so. In the last couple of years, I found that dark color soft plastics with purple flakes, or brown jig skirts with a few purple strands, are quite effective for smallies, not just for June or summer months, but spring and fall as well. My guess is they might have seen too many GP or plain brown jigs.

 

For hard baits, like jerkbaits or topwaters, purple color isn't that effective though. My most productive jerkbait colors are still metallic, white, or transparent, depending on water clarity and seasons.

So you don’t even use GP w purple flake, you go darker?

One of my favorites is GP purple gold.  Always been my go to tube.

40 minutes ago, ohioguy25 said:

So you don’t even use GP w purple flake, you go darker?

 

By "dark color," I mean darker than watermelon or blue. I consider GP and brown as dark colors, but I understand some brands' GP are very close to watermelon, even greenish chartreuse sometimes.  

 

GP with purple flakes are quite effective IMO. In fact, this "GP Goby" color is one of my favorite colors. 

 

 

26 minutes ago, newapti5 said:

 

By "dark color," I mean darker than watermelon or blue. I consider GP and brown as dark colors, but I understand some brands' GP are very close to watermelon, even greenish chartreuse sometimes.  

 

GP with purple flakes are quite effective IMO. In fact, this "GP Goby" color is one of my favorite colors. 

 

 

Sweet, thx 🤙🏼 Any particular brand you’d recommend?

A little bit of purple in any lure never hurts.

6 hours ago, ohioguy25 said:

Sweet, thx 🤙🏼 Any particular brand you’d recommend?

 

I don't think I am allowed to mention certain brands here, but google "Green Pumpkin Goby" and you'll see which brand offers that color.  Berkley MaxScent also offers a purple flake color: 

 

 

What river?  For some reason my region’s Smallie’s react really well to three colors.

Green Ugly

Yamamoto 176

Buzzard Puke( double dipped blue inside and coffee brown outside ) Anything 3 to 4 inches works.

 

The Columbia is 226 miles from the mouth to McNary dam.  About 196 miles has smallmouth.  

Yamamoto 301 is GP w/black-green-purple flake, 331 is GP w/black-purple-copper flake. Both are good!

Tom

SM seem to like purple flakes here in the Great Lakes...

I’ve done fine on plain gp, but I really like a gp w red/green flake tube. Black, white and goby hues are pretty solid as well

For 20 years GP was the best color tube for SM followed by roadkill. Last 3 years it has fallen off for me. Now an original Gitzit in brown or leech has worked best. Same thing happened with finesse jigs as dark brown has taken over GP.

 

Allen 

On 9/29/2025 at 12:59 PM, ohioguy25 said:

Interesting, for any plastics or just tube?

Any plastics - I’ve tried and tried, but never any real positive results.