Posts: 114
Threads: 0
Joined: Nov 2017
Reputation:
0
Finally organized my hard plastics and have a fairly respectable collection, wanting to transition more into lures than and use less live bait, particularly minnows.
Noticed a overwhelming majority have yellow eyes, even when it doesn't contrast well with the pupil or head color. Just a handful have other colors, mostly reddish. I know there's a lot of variety out there nowadays, I like the look of the iridescent, 3-d, or real looking types but wondering if the fake/goofy eyes are just as good or better, kind of like how real bait fish don't rattle but lures do.
Seems like common sense to use real looking eyes for clearer waters or slower retrieval, or flashier for muddy water or low light, things like that but how important important is the eye even? Might be more important to us than the fish. Seems like the fish would have to be looking down at the side of the fish to see much of the eye anyway.
Just wondering if anyone has any eye color preferences or thought about it of any kind.
[signature]
Posts: 35,759
Threads: 262
Joined: Sep 2002
Reputation:
49
[#0000FF]I have been tying flies and making all kinds of lures for several decades. Still learning new things all the time. But there are a few things I think I have established along the way.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]1. Colors are often more important to the angler than the fish. Depth, speed and action are usually more important. Fish do not see colors the same way we do, so color coordination ain't a biggy. But visibility is, especially in cold murky water...or in low light conditions. That's why a bright, visible contrasting eye can be more effective than a "plain vanilla" one.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]2. I make eyes of all colors...white with black pupil, yellow with black pupil, hot red or orange...with or without black pupil...and even yellow or green chartreuse without a pupil. See some of the pics for examples.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]3. Even in clear water on a bright day I usually do better with lures that have yellow eyes, rather than white. The only exception would be when fishing super clear reservoirs in which threadfin shad are a primary forage species. Sometimes the white eye works better. I don't know. Ask the fish.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]4. I DO put some kind of eye on almost every lure I make...or customize after buying a blank. I truly believe that predators often pattern on eyes. They might let a dull colored stick or bit of algae float by them. But add and eye and that stuff becomes potential prey. I have lost count of the times when lures with eyes solidly outperformed eyeless ones.
[/#0000FF]
[signature]
Posts: 114
Threads: 0
Joined: Nov 2017
Reputation:
0
Nice work.
Chuck/utwalleye gave me a few things to try, pretty sure they're yours.
Looked all around for a spinner bait I made with one of the ultra minnow jigs, I threw a grub on it or something. Probably ended up MIA but I'll get a picture if it turns up, also realized how disorganized everything besides my hard plastic box is, going need take a day or two to get things orderly, but who doesn't enjoy several giant balls of tangled line lures, like a puzzle that can give you tetanus.
Anyway it looked good with the spinnerbait, mad I lost it.
The weight was perfect and the hook was bendable enough to straighten out of snags.
Still have a light, yellow head feather jig, a light vertical jig with gold tinsel , yellow with green stripes and a sparkly spinner with a red treble and prop. Nice, quality work.
Thinking about getting some glowing paint to use around the eyes on a couple cranks for night fishing. Also, maybe some kind of carrier for blood or scent to attach to the body or hook. Don't know if anyone makes any bleeding baits but it sounds fun, also the next time a fish or hook spears you have a fresh source.
Always wondered about battery power , seems like LED eyes could be interesting.
Maybe a bait that can shock the fish after it gets hooked to incapacitate, ensuring its capture, maybe not.
Don't really make any of my own tackle but I have a bar of lead made entirely from lost/found sinkers, going to make into more sinkers and bullets to use against werefishes.
[signature]
Posts: 35,759
Threads: 262
Joined: Sep 2002
Reputation:
49
[#0000FF]If you are looking for something to "shock" the fish, just use a "Dupont spinner" (dynamite).[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]I love the Ultra Minnow jigs. They are perfectly balanced for a horizontal hold when fishing vertically. But they are great for a lot of other uses too. I modify my molds to allow me to add wire or swivels...for various spinner rigs. See pics.
[/#0000FF]
[signature]
Posts: 114
Threads: 0
Joined: Nov 2017
Reputation:
0
Pretty stuff, those jingle jigs look deadly.
Sometimes it feels like dynamite is all that would work. Not sure how many ways there are to fish with it but I'd tie it on to a line with a sinker and cast it like anything else. Maybe cover it in stink bait and use long delay fuse, some payback for a bad catfishing year.
[signature]
Posts: 35,759
Threads: 262
Joined: Sep 2002
Reputation:
49
[#0000FF]I might suggest adding a couple of treble hooks and painting on some kind of design...on the dynamite. That way you could bluff your way out of it if checked by an officer.[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]
[/#0000FF]
[#0000FF]Here is an example of a "custom" paint job I put on a large plastic tube for a fellow angler.
[/#0000FF]
[inline HOOKER.jpg]
[#0000FF][/#0000FF]
[signature]
Posts: 114
Threads: 0
Joined: Nov 2017
Reputation:
0
Looks like a product of being out at sea too long, or something a sapient fish would cast back at you.
[signature]
