Tough day - at first

[SenkoSam]

Had a similar experience as a previous poster of having difficulty finding fish. Last Friday I caught 45 fish, with the wind 20-25 mph. Today I barely caught 38 per my counter and they were not in the same locations. Post spawn fish relocate which is something that occured to me when I saw some kayak anglers fishing in the middle of the lake vs the shallows. After that, I moved out into somewhat deeper water of 7' and started catching loose school fish.

My reason as usual fishing any water is to catch fish on lures I make and design. Happily they caught different species and were attacked like it was the fish's last meal ! Here are a few:

This one is a 2" wacky mini-stick hit by fish of all sizes. The jig head is 1/16 oz with a #4 hook.

Here's another:


I also wanted to confirm that clear plastic bodies or tails can catch fish:



This hybrid was made by taking a claw from a bass craw lure and attaching it to a grub body:


One thing I sometimes forget are that fish become very aggressive post spawn and they did not disappoint.
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[wiperhunter2]

Still a great day, even if less fish were caught and it appears all those new designs or creations are working just fine. Interesting seeing the clear plastic, it looks odd but the fish sure don't seem to mind.
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[SenkoSam]

Interesting seeing the clear plastic, it looks odd but the fish sure don't seem to mind.

But when you think about it, a clear shape does have color depending on the fish's position in relation to it, whether from alongside, above looking down or looking up at it. Clear plastic - especially round shapes, do something to light same as a prism converts light into a color spectrum. Reflection and refraction (altered wavelength transmission) give the clear lure its shape no different than an opaque color though more subtle.

Note the different background colors transmitted through this mini-stick as well as the edges that slow light the most creating the shape that's visualized:


Interesting is the constant color changes the ministick legs exhibits depending on background. Fish bite clear as well as any other color provided the lure shape, size and action are within limits.
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[wiperhunter2]

That sounds logical but the shape seems odd to me, I wonder what the fish think they are[:/].
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[SenkoSam]

[quote wiperhunter2]That sounds logical but the shape seems odd to me, I wonder what the fish think they are[:/].[/quote]

Just a thought: odd to an angler is not a problem for fish biting something that resembles nothing in nature.

Fish don't/ can't think and I won't pretend to know otherwise.

Fish react to the fast quiver of the vibrating legs like they react to hundreds of other lure designs that simulate nothing.

Take those lures I gave you that caught fish. Did you wonder what they represented to a fish while you caught it? It didn't matter because the the fish struck. I was skeptical about a skirted jig with pork trailer first time I tried it. Once it caught a bass, I was hooked along with the fish and realized the combination worked only because of a lure action that provoked that fish to strike.

Lures provoke, some far better than others.

But, there are some serious advantages to fishing for bluegills, crappies, and perch with artificial baits.

There is no such thing as a fake bait. The adjective artificial suggests the lure isn't real, which of course it is. If it wasn't real it would be imaginary, a figment of our imagination.

Here's another:

Leg spacing and tension ensure a realistic topwater presentation that opportunistic panfish can't resist.

Realistic to who or what? of what?

Just more nonsense to sell lures.
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