To paint or not ta paint ??

I am doing or trying to do research on the use of Jigs for fishing in general.
It seems that there is a divided opinion on whether jigs reallly need to be painted. The live bait or soft plastic being the big attraction.
I have fished minnows on a jig and had success with crappies.
Seems to me that when fishing for bass and other game fish we want all we can get in the way of attractants for them.
I hope to find some others feelings about this.

Thanks for reading,
TIGHT LINES
Roger

Jig color does not matter to me much. I usually grab unpainted when fishing plastics or live bait for walleye. When bass fishing, using bass jigs, I always use one painted to match the skirt or plastic.

When conditions are perfect and the fish are most aggressive, you could probably catch them on nearly anything. Its stepping back and looking at a situation in the worse of conditions. Dirty water, spooked, ultra clear…. then you want any advantage to an attractant or natural appearance you can get.
I think you also need to look at the environment you fishing in. Pitching to logs, snags, or tight cover will produce reaction strikes to food being available at their nose. Compared to fishing a large flat with minimal to no cover.

I tend think there are times when either a bright or darker color can make a difference – not so sure little twist in colors matters as much. We have been out fishing a big flat lake in WI (Winnebago) on drifts along the edges of a reef and color seems to make a difference. Sometimes a yellow or orange seems to get bit more than blue or black, and vs versa.

My buddy and I each tend to have our favorites – and I think that is a personal confidence thing. I always seem to reach for the yellow/orange two tone or green/yellow two tone in the box, and know it is as much a mental thing on my end.

Ive had days where a different shade of same color will do much better than another.. I think color is a major factor in walleye fishing..

IMHO the guy that thinks color dont matter is missing the boat!

The light spectrum is proof enough for me that different colors are only visible through certain depth levels, depending on factors that would inhibit clarity…

The Pro’s would only carry unpainted lures if they worked as well as colored lures.
Jig colors…Blue/Black, Greens, browns and black catch 90% of the bass around the country. To me its all about the trailer action…grub, craw or paddletail…I always trim the skirt to the hook bend so the seductive action of the trailer can be seen.