The Color Red

I have found something very funny about the use of Red in lure colors, line and hook color.

There is one school of thought, and marketing plan that points out that the color red is nearly invisible under water and so they make Cajun Red Line, and now Power Pro red line.

There is another school of thought that red is an attractive color to fish, and this is why there are bleeding bait hooks and bleeding bait colors of lures.

Which is it? Is it invisible or not?

I think that red is an attractive color to gullible fishermen, and that is what the companies want to attract.

Has anyone had success with the red stuff, and which way does it work? Is it invisible, or does red attract more strikes?

[ShadBuster]

I have had success with red in lures. Red is one of the first colors to disappear in the water column. However I think that this red marketing mania is overhyped. I prefer small black hooks. For disappearing line I use a Yozuri Pink Flourocarbon leader.

I have read (no pun intended) that walleyes only see shades of red and orange, take it for what it's worth.

On another note, I used to fish a local reservoir for walleyes 3-4 days a week on a regular basis. Trolling was the norm, with my favorite baits being Shad raps and wally divers in size 5. After hearing the 'red' phenomenon years back, I decided to doctor up a couple of lures. I took a perch colored wally diver, and painted a red line vertically behind the gill, and also put three red dots behind it horizontally. The next outing, I trolled this bait, along with an undoctored one of the same size, brand, and model. The 'red' one was on fire, catching fish after fish. The plain one caught zilch. I then switched the lures to the opposite sides of the boat, with the same outcome. Red lure-couldn't keep the fish off of it, plain lure, zilch.

I found it interesting, if nothing else, so i decided to try it on another lure, this time a #5 shad rap, standard silver and black. I got the same results. Fish loved the 'red' lure, and wouldn't look at the plain lure on this particular day.

I tried my un-scientific experiment after that day, and did end up catching walleyes on the plain baits as I had in the past, but their catch rate never compared to the lures with red on them.

[Pooch]

The red lure/bleeding hook/invisible line stuff seems at first seemed to be another marketing ploy. I've thought about it in the past and have come to my conclusion.

I've read studies that say that walleye vision peaks with chartruse and light orange. As the orange gets darker towards the red spectrum it quickly becomes black or only barely perceptible.

So, I've concluded this, for what it's worth:

Red line may indeed be hard for a walleye to pick up on.

Red on hooks or crank baits. If red is indeed hard to perceive by a walleye, it may act like a "cloak" mimicking a natural baits ability to blend itself. With a crank bait zigging and jagging, maybe the crank looks more real and not some garish looking thing. Maybe part of the crank bait is hard to see for a walleye. Could the red be breaking up some of the harsh lines on a crank bait profile? Giving it a more natural look while still attracting walleye? Sort of "now I see it and now I only sort of see it".

Just my two cents worth. Great question.

Pooch

[Klass Act]

Something I learned from photography.

The color red is at the top of the spectrum of visable light. Humans can only report on what "they" see with any accuracy. Creature to creature, the number of rods and cones in any eye will govern what colors come through or are exaggerated, or weaker. In all of that, Red disappears first as light diminishes. Red is not the same red through another colored filter. Red, is not the same red on a cloudy day as it is on a sunny one. Red is not red as the Red Bait dives or moves deeper in the water collumn and away from the light. Clear water vrs stained water. . . what happens to the Red in comparison ? In any kind of underwater shade what happens to Red. The thing that will happen for sure is that the Red contrast where it can be seen as red, turns to a different shade of grey where it can not be seen without light. If that "grey" is outlined on a body of a bait that is otherwise completely contrasted with red, it will stand out more as contrast as the light dissapears for whatever reason. An iteresting note is that when pulling a bait through weeds, red will then flash grey in the shade and red in the open.

[Jim Tunney]

I have been painting the bills on my cranks and sticks baits red for years. They work better than the ones without the red bill. Positivily better. I color them with a permanent magic marker.
I learned this many years ago from the best Charter Captain in Dunkirk and he still does it.
Can't argue with sucess.

RED's the answer!

"Looney Tunes"
><<<<*>

[ShadBuster]

I do like red eyes. Not my own of course:) Do you see any reason for red hooks? They don't see to work for me.

[Jim Tunney]

I learned to put a red hook on the first hook of a worm harness and the first hook of a crank or stick off of Keith Kavajecz. I'm not going to argue with his sucess.
It realy justs makes common sense.

"Looney Tunes"
><<<<*>

My point in starting this post is that it does NOT make sense to me.

In some ways people say Red attracts....but then it is noted that it is the first color to disappear in the water, so then it is invisible. Common sense says it cannot do be both an attractive color and invisible.

If it appears Gray or black under water, then why not just use gray or black?

I truly believe the color red does make walleye bite better over other colors, in hooks expecially, I've swaped out many of my front hooks on the cranks, Reef Runners to be more specific and found when catching the fish I've caught on these baits the walleye was hooked for sure on the front red hook with that trebel directly into the top of the walleye's mouth , making me believe the wallye attacked the red hook or the front of the bait I've caught at least 40 fish that I've noticed this since I've started swaping out that front treble. I have looked at the color charts of what disapears first in the water column and red is the first to go BUT it's only when fishing deep water so for the most of us fishing less than 50 foot of water trolling cranks and spinners, the color red can still be scene by walleye. If you notice you don't see a ton of red spoons as those are usually fished alot deeper, yea there are some but not nearly as many as orange's, purple's, greens etc.