The Color RED?????

[slimeyslab]

Someone please explain this to me. I read somewhere that red is the quickest color to dissapear in the water. I think it was the reasoning for Cajun Red and a couple of other's making red line. I also see alot of companies advertising hooks that are red and are supposed to look like a bleeding bait. Which one is it?

[PBUG2009]

read my thread about red in the jig tying forum

[CrappiePappy]

Someone please explain this to me. I read somewhere that red is the quickest color to dissapear in the water. I think it was the reasoning for Cajun Red and a couple of other's making red line. I also see alot of companies advertising hooks that are red and are supposed to look like a bleeding bait. Which one is it?

... it could be both

Bare with me on this :p

Red line is transparent .... disappears at a certain level (lack of light). Actually, it doesn't "disappear" ... the color red is not distinguishable from darker colors (background) once it's no longer illuminated by light.

Red hooks are opaque .... the red color is reflected when in the light. But, they will appear black once they go below a depth where the light doesn't penetrate enough to make the red color visable.

(disclaimer - I may not have explained this all that well, and my descriptive words may not be exact .... but, I think that's the gist of it.

... cp

[smoothlures]

read my thread about red in the jig tying forum

Do this.

And CP is pretty much right on.

[Smoky]

Yep....{sin (a2)}/{sin (a1)}=n1 / n2. Tight Lines!

[ab824]

Been catching fish with red and chartreuse jigs.

[Redy2Fish]

I "seem" to catch more crappie on red hooks, but, I'm not 100% certain, prolly 'cause I use them more than I use gold hooks? I think I'll try gold hooks exclusively for a while and see if it makes a difference? I think the solution is how you fish the jig, not the color of the hook.

[skiptomylu]

Ditto the jig tying board here has a good thread going on this.
http://www.crappie.com/crappie/jig-t...23841-red.html

Skip

[Crestliner08]

... it could be both

Bare with me on this :p

Red line is transparent .... disappears at a certain level (lack of light). Actually, it doesn't "disappear" ... the color red is not distinguishable from darker colors (background) once it's no longer illuminated by light.

Red hooks are opaque .... the red color is reflected when in the light. But, they will appear black once they go below a depth where the light doesn't penetrate enough to make the red color visable.

(disclaimer - I may not have explained this all that well, and my descriptive words may not be exact .... but, I think that's the gist of it.

... cp

Excellent answer! And one final plug for red.....the color pattern, red & white, has been around since fishing lures were first used. It may very well be the most productive and most produced color pattern of all time. That's gotta tell ya something!

I use red hooks quite frequently and my fishing hasn't suffered any.

[CTom]

Red hair, red feathers, red thread, solid red paint, red plastics and red thread will turn from red to brown to a muddy blackish gray, in that order, starting at about 6 feet in quite clear water. Red line, red hooks and glow paints are different.

Red Line is transparent and looks red to us above water. The surface of the line is such that it allows light in so we can see it but does not let a lot of the light to be reflected out again. This is why it disappears when it is under water. When dropping in the water column, red line will transition from color to color just like a plain old red haired jig. EXCEPT for the cut end. If you've ever see one of those deco trees using 100's of pieces of monofilment line and a light in the base that changes colors, you'll also notice that the very end, the cut end of each strand of line is a bright speck of light. Red line works in the very same way. Light that gets captured inside the line and does not get reflected has to go somewhere, so it follows the line and is shown at the end as a bright speck of red. Try taking a piece of red line and cutting the end clean. Then cup your hand holding the line a foot or two away from the end along with a flashlight [on of course], so you are lighting up the surface of the line. At the same time, look at the cut end. This is what fish see at the hook.

Red hooks sold as "bleeding" hooks are always gold-plated hooks covered with a transparent red finish. Light travels through the red coating easily and the gold plating reflects that light in almos and equal value. This will hold true until said hook gets about 6 feet deep and then the transitioning color change takes over. In the end the red hook will look similar to a bronze hook color-wise, but will have that transparent quality to it which actually gives the hook's finish a sense of depth.

Glow paints are now available in forms that glow in specific colors. This concept is what is taking the ice fishing by storm. Red was never a color option to crappie anglers [or to the crappies] during the winter in water depths much deeper than four feet. The new glow shows red wherever it is in the water column and is one reason fish react so favorably to it. Blue, green, yellow, orange....there is a whole spectrum of pigmented jig paints that deliver live color to depths never imagined before and they are all new to the fish. Red glow does not turn to brown, gray or black except when it is viewed at a distance of about 6 feet from wherever the jig of painted hook is in the water coloumn. Imagine a jig at 30 feet glowing red and in the center of a 12 foot ball. That 12 foot ball is the sphere where the red will be effective as a red color. Plain old red was left 24 feet ago on the way down.

Personally I feel that how colors come into play with how fish determine an order of perference is a new science altogether. I don't feel that we have even come close to un-raveling the mysteries of why fish seem to like this color or that or why fish will change preferences for colors at certain times during a day. Two jig colors I lean on a lot are purple and blue. I see shifts in color needs between these two colors on most days. Some days will see a shift from purple to hot pink. Other days may see a shift get radical and I'll need to do a black or white to get things back on track. Its the "why" part that remains un-answered.

But that little speck of bright light at the end of the line where you trim the tag at your hook. Don't ever think that that goes un-noticed.