Jig color recommendations for Pa Lakes

I see different colors recommended depending on water clarity.

Having only really fished in central Pa, I'm not sure how I'd classify the water of the lakes I fish. They are not crystal clear where you can see the bottom in 10 FOW. I'd say they mostly have a greenish color to them. I've been to Ricket's Glenn to look at the water falls with the wife that water was definitely stained brown, almost looked like weak tea.

So how would you classify most of the lakes in Pa? Clear? Stained?

What would you recommend for jig color. I find myself using a lot of chartreuse.

Pink, white, chartreuse, usually work for me, and colored jig heads, pink being one of them. Will be trying other colors this year too, but those are my go to, first.

With the size of our fish most seem to be 9 1/2 or less, what size soft jig do you like. I bought a bunch for the Boby Garland baby shad (2 inch) when they were on sale. they seem pretty big compared to the hand tied shad dart jigs I been using?

Thinking about getting some slabinator mini rods at 1 3/4 long.

These colors worked for me especially the gold/gold/chart. and black/chart. hand ties. Longlining or casting black/chart. plastic on a Road Runner. Just don't forget the Berkley nibbles. Didn't get out as much as I would have liked because of the plague.

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I use alot of pink,white and chartreuse. Pink is my first choice. Last summer,my brother and I caught most of our walleye on pink and purple worm harnesses.

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Originally Posted by mchech

These colors worked for me especially the gold/gold/chart. and black/chart. hand ties. Longlining or casting black/chart. plastic on a Road Runner. Just don't forget the Berkley nibbles. Didn't get out as much as I would have liked because of the plague.

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Great looking ties, and good info from the posters on color combinations. I have some of those colors with my trout magnets that I will try this year, particularly early when the water is fairly dirty.
Bob

Agree with the above on the top 3 jig colors. My historic hierarchy has been white, chartreuse, and pink. Last year pink was #1. You have to look beyond water color/clarity. Sky conditions play a key role. Is it sunny or cloudy or a combo? Is it 7:00 AM or noon or 3:00 PM or evening? Keep records of what worked best when. History doesn’t necessarily repeat itself, but it often rhymes. Some other character said that one first. Don’t forget water temperature, water temperature and all important water temperature. And don’t be afraid to go beyond the top 3 colors. I had unused blue/white tube jigs in my box of tricks that started catching jumbos when all else went dry one day late last October.

For me there’s just too many colors to recommend just three. Those pink, white, chartreuse colors will work just about anywhere if and or when teamed with another color. I start with what worked better for me the previous season then work my way from there. Pourhouse custom baits milk money was one of the hottest baits last season. Bobby Garland blue ice and glacier put a ton of fish in the boat too. So did purple mist and monkey milk. My hand ties worked well early in the season. Red chartreuse, black chartreuse,and brown all put fish in the boat on different lakes. Black or chartreuse hand ties did a number on the gills in May and June. So don’t get stuck on using just a few baits. When the bite slows down, don’t hesitate to change to something they rarely see on that lake.

Lots of good advice already given. My go to is a silver head with white calf tail and some silver tinsel. However I usually fish 2 jigs so I can add another color to fish at the same time. Chartreuse, pink would be my next inline. However you never know. I have fished in Va a good bit in the early season and on one impoundment ( Chickahominy lake) behind Rockohock I found that a medium red colored head with orange calf tail will sometime out fish all other colors. At times the water there can e a little off colored and I catch most fish in 20 feet of water. I agree that trying different colors and even size can make a huge difference. One big factor is cold water requires very slow moving presentation. There is no wrong when you are catching fish. My suggestion is when fishing is good experiment and switch off with secondary colors and jig sizes. After a while you can usually tell which ones produce better then others.

Can't believe that most of you agree with my selection. A friend, that made and sold jigs, got me on the pink train, years ago. And to think, that when mentioning pink, some would never believe it. Hey, will take anybodies advice on what to use, when you know the type fishing person they are. Yea, got some Texas stuff to try this year.

Always have a pair of clippers with me. One for trimming, when retying, and second to open up the hooks about 10 degrees, for better hook set. Once after starting doing that, my catch rate increased big time.

I have purchased 2" Bobby Garland Baby Shad in the following colors:
Pink Lemonade, Lights Out, Purple Mist, Butter Belly, Pink Pearl, Live Minnow, Pearl White, Hologram Ghost, Cajun Cricket, Monkey Milk, Black Gum, Blue Grass, Vegas, Chartreuse Silver, and Mayfly.
I have purchased Berkley Gulp 2 1/2 inch minnows in the following colors:
Black Shad, Emerald Shiner, and Smelt.
Hopefully there are some good colors in the stuff I have bought. I have not used any of them yet. Hopefully the weather will stay nice so I can get out and go fishing soon.

What size/type of jighead do you recommend for these types of bait?

Wow that’s a lot of knowledge being thrown out there! I agree with Chauncey on colors I use even non-painted a lot . Early spring I like hair jigs or crappie magnet size tails. I also pinch off some to shorten length. Later I use triple ripples , Jenkins mermaids, Charlie brewers and Mr. crappie. Colors all over the board , firetiger worked great at Shenango, white at Wilhelm . It’s what ever your wallet will stand. And don’t forget the nibbles [emoji41][emoji476][emoji476][emoji476]



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Originally Posted by gdengr

I have purchased 2" Bobby Garland Baby Shad in the following colors:
Pink Lemonade, Lights Out, Purple Mist, Butter Belly, Pink Pearl, Live Minnow, Pearl White, Hologram Ghost, Cajun Cricket, Monkey Milk, Black Gum, Blue Grass, Vegas, Chartreuse Silver, and Mayfly.
I have purchased Berkley Gulp 2 1/2 inch minnows in the following colors:
Black Shad, Emerald Shiner, and Smelt.
Hopefully there are some good colors in the stuff I have bought. I have not used any of them yet. Hopefully the weather will stay nice so I can get out and go fishing soon.
What size/type of jighead do you recommend for these types of bait?

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I like 1/16 and 1/32 oz ball heads mostly. Also a few 1/8oz. for longlining or casting.

I like 1/32 ,1/64 and the 1/8oz jigs. I don't tie my own but a friend of mine does. I use a lot of Malibu jigs in different colors with pink my first choice,pink and white combo and plain white. If they don't want those colors then chartreuse is my next choice. I like live minnows on them but last year I started using crappie nibbles on them with great success. The Malibu also sucks in the slab sauce. This year I'm going to try Pautzke crappie fireballs. They are new this year. They are smaller in size compared to the average egg so I think the 1/32oz jig would be a good choice with the smaller hook.

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[QUOTE=patrapper;4111351]I like 1/32 ,1/64 and the 1/8oz jigs. I don't tie my own but a friend of mine does. I use a lot of Malibu jigs in different colors with pink my first choice,pink and white combo and plain white. If they don't want those colors then chartreuse is my next choice. I like live minnows on them but last year I started using crappie nibbles on them with great success. The Malibu also sucks in the slab sauce. This year I'm going to try Pautzke crappie fireballs. They are new this year. They are smaller in size compared to the average egg so I think the 1/32oz jig would be a good choice with the smaller hook.

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I fished those Pautzke crappie fireballs last year on Wilhelm. They worked. Jury is still out on comparing them to nibbles. I want to test their performance long term. Proving a theory dictates at least 10000 crappie must be caught to prove their worth. :biggrin Let's do our best to catch a bunch this year in the name of science!

I like the way you think!

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Jig size depends on a few things for me. Time of year, depth I’m fishing, and if I’m using a bobber or casting or hang gliding deeper water.
Early spring when they move into very shallow water, I’ll use from a 1/32 to a 1/80th under the smallest bobber I can get. That’s water under 5 ft. From 5 to 10 ft water that’s warmed up to 50 to 65*, I’ll go with a 1/16 whether casting to shore or brush. I may use a bigger bobber that is just big enough to hold the jig without a split shot. You’ll have to learn to read your bobber tho. Some bites will be up bites when the fish just takes the weight of the jig upwards and your bobber may just twitch. When the fish move deeper, I bring out the long rods and hang glide the deeper water over drops, brushpiles, or stump fields. My setup consists of a 1/2 oz sinker about 15 inches above a 1/8th head. This rig can be fished from ten foot down to as deep as you need to go. If you’d like to see it in action go to the Brushpile fishing web page and look for season 4, Shenango lake hang gliding. Very informative show.

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Originally Posted by chaunc

Jig size depends on a few things for me. Time of year, depth I’m fishing, and if I’m using a bobber or casting or hang gliding deeper water.
Early spring when they move into very shallow water, I’ll use from a 1/32 to a 1/80th under the smallest bobber I can get. That’s water under 5 ft. From 5 to 10 ft water that’s warmed up to 50 to 65*, I’ll go with a 1/16 whether casting to shore or brush. I may use a bigger bobber that is just big enough to hold the jig without a split shot. You’ll have to learn to read your bobber tho. Some bites will be up bites when the fish just takes the weight of the jig upwards and your bobber may just twitch. When the fish move deeper, I bring out the long rods and hang glide the deeper water over drops, brushpiles, or stump fields. My setup consists of a 1/2 oz sinker about 15 inches above a 1/8th head. This rig can be fished from ten foot down to as deep as you need to go. If you’d like to see it in action go to the Brushpile fishing web page and look for season 4, Shenango lake hang gliding. Very informative show.

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What style of bobber do you prefer for the shallow water fishing?

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Originally Posted by gdengr

What style of bobber do you prefer for the shallow water fishing?

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The tiniest unweighted that you can find at the baitshop or even Walmart. Name brand doesn’t make a difference.

chaunc,

Watched the video on hang gliding. Entertaining and informative!
Is that a technique to be used in late summer and fall when the fish are in deeper water or can it be used other times in the year?

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Originally Posted by gdengr

chaunc,

Watched the video on hang gliding. Entertaining and informative!
Is that a technique to be used in late summer and fall when the fish are in deeper water or can it be used other times in the year?

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Any time of year. Last season I started using slide bobbers with it. Absolutely hammered the crappies. Had to use a bigger bobber and add a big split shot above the 1/16 head. Didn’t use the 1/2 oz weight. Next video I do I’m going to use that technique as well as hang gliding.