Does The Trailer Have To Match The Jig? 2024
DFrench97 reply :
As the question says, does the trailer have to match or be close to the color of the jig?
Thanks
00 mod reply :
Nope.
Jeff
ABW reply :
I usually like to match because my OCD hates it,but I guess you can try to mix colors.
K_Mac reply :
I agree with Jeff. Sometimes something a little different is a good thing. I do have some color combinations that work for me. A red trailer on a black or green jig is a favorite.
A-Jay reply :
I can't say for sure how or what a bass "sees". Also, I have no reason to believe they see things like I do.
So when selecting colors of any bait, trailer or otherwise, for me there are no rules - only what works.
The bass will let you know when you've gotten it right.
A-Jay
smallieking reply :
it all depends on the jig and what you are doing with it. if you are fishing a white swimjig i would have to say youd have to throw some sort of white trailer. i like to flip trees with jigs and my go to is green pumpkin with a brown trailer for clear water and for dirty water i like a black jig with a blue trailer. but when flipping grass i found that the fish get really particular when it comes to the skirt color vs the trailer color. ive had amazing days throwing a purple jig with a brown trailer in grass. ive had days they wanted a red and black skirt with a green trailer... i like to mix it up and let the fish tell me what they want.
also a great tip is for smallmouth make sure the skirt and trailer matches. i jig fish alot for smallies and ive never caught one on a crazy color combination.
Snakehead Whisperer reply :
I've never had an issue with mixing colors. To date my most successful combos have a been black jig with chartreuse trailer (smallmouth killer) and a brown/blue jig with an orange pork rind. These are usually the first thing I'll throw if there's a jig bite.
I'm not even sure what a bass thinks it's eating when it hits a jig, all I do know is that they eat them.
primetime reply :
Only if you want them to match....I like to contrast colors for visibility reasons at times, when I fished up north in clear water i always kept my colors and trailers natural and matching for the most part or I would use a brown jig with a watermelong trailer but that matches and is not way out of whack, but for smallmouth sometimes I would use a bright trailer almost like using a firetail worm, and I would try mixing up some oranges, white, or a trailer with alot of metal flake for flash etc., In clear water I usually will stick to matching colors or natural I should say, but that is just my preference as their is truly no right or wrong way to do anything when it comes to color, I have been with people who do things I would never think about using and they are very effeciive because they have confidence in what they are using. One of my favorite colors for flippiing cover is black and blue or black and red with a green pumpkin or watermelon trailer, and it has worked well at times. I like to mess around with crawfish and sunfish coloring so browns, orange, greens, and then maybe something with purple or black, but I have done well with black and blue jig with rage craw in a green pumpkin or Dark Red color, I forget what they call it, same with a rodent. I know guys are getting into UV stuff now, and if water is deep or stained, fish are only seeing a shadow, but I plan on experimenting with UV trailers as I have used them for years in saltwater and they are awesome, not sure why I never really messed around with them for Bass. I am a huge believer that giving a new look is important especially when you are fishing water that gets pounded by others. We all use the same colors for the most part, I know fish are seeing a black and blue jig all day long, but it works, but I have found changing the profile or color so it is completely different can really pay off, and when it does it does, sometimes you have to just trust your gut and hope it works out, sometimes it doesnt, but it never hurts to experiment. I like to go back over old bassmaster tournaments to see what the winning bait was and you will see colors like Tomato with chart flake and start to think to yourself, how did that guy have the confidence to try that worm when that much money was on the line? Only absolute in fishing is you can never say never, I have seen bubblegum worms be effective and some people still throw pink floating worms like it is their job in the spring and it works for them....Pink Sluggo is the only soft bait I use when I visit Long Island 2x a year for stiped bass fishing and we put UV gel on the pink sluggos both shallow and deep, for some reason pink is our most productive color. I bet other guys only use black and do just as good. I try to pick colors that make sense with water color, forrage base, and size of bait, but for smallmouth, Orange and bright colors often used to be the best when I fished for them.
HoosierHawgs reply :
To answer your question, absolutely not. Bass are partly colorblind, so color is not that big of a deal in my opinion. When you are fishing dirty water, contrasting jig and trailer can help highlight each other for visibility to the fish. If you are fishing clear water, try to match closely what the forage is. It is all about what you are doing. When it comes to fishing a football jig, I will often match both the skirt and trailer color to crawfish I find in the area. If you find one in a basses mouth with a different coloring, take a felt pen and make an on the spot color change. With a flipping jig, if in clear water, or green tint water, my favorite combo is an Okeechobee Craw Skirt matched w/ a black chunk w/chartreuse pinchers, which most wouldn't think matches, but it works. For swim jigs, I fish 3 combos. Black and Blue Skirt w/a black, blue, purple trailer, an Okeechobee Craw Skirt W/a green pumpkin or orange and blue trailer for imitating a bluegill, and a white skirt w/a pearl w/silver flake colored trailer for imitating shad.
BasshunterJGH reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 7:06 AM, asianboywonder said:I usually like to match because my OCD hates it,but I guess you can try to mix colors.
Yep I love matching colors! The coolest combination I've found is a dirty jigs blackendblue with a roboworm kickin craw black grape trailer. They match perfect! They don't have to match though.
aavery2 reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 8:18 AM, jakob1010 said:To answer your question, absolutely not. Bass are partly colorblind, so color is not that big of a deal in my opinion.
I am interested in why you believe bass are partially colorblind.
Montanaro reply :
Clear water match
Murky or muddy you can contrast
WRB reply :
Contrast in colors is usually the best bet with jig trailers, using 1of the skirt colors in the trailer.
Tom
HoosierHawgs reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 8:40 AM, aavery2 said:I am interested in why you believe bass are partially colorblind.
http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/75803-are-bass-color-blind/
Diggy reply :
my socks dont even match
Sam reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 7:02 AM, 00 mod said:Nope.
Jeff
X2
aavery2 reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 9:21 AM, jakob1010 said:http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/75803-are-bass-color-blind/
Good thread, RoLo is very knowledgeable. I did not see any mention of bass being color blind however. Can you point to a post or something that led you to that belief.
Matthew2000 reply :
Well if the color of the trailer does not matter then why does the color of the jig matter? Would you use a bright pink jig with yellow stripes ?
HoosierHawgs reply :
This article talks about how they see some colors but not all. Says they cannot say blue/violet hues well, and says they can see greens and oranges extremely well. By definition if they cannot distinguish blue/violet it would make them colorblind. Also, water clarity and light play into their vision. All color is is light refractions.
http://www.bradwiegmann.com/fish-biology/39-fish-biologist/119-characteristics-of-largemouth-bass-vision.html
aavery2 reply :
Is this the part of the article that you are in reference to?
"It is unknown how many cone types bass have, but similar freshwater fish are known to have two cone types. This fact, coupled by some recent studies on bass, suggest that bass identify all of the colors we do, with the possible exception of blues and violets. This research also indicates that bass seem to see shades of green, yellow, and orange exceptionally well."
I think you meant to say that color is the reflection of light, I believe refraction is a little different.
A-Jay reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 10:42 AM, aavery2 said:Is this the part of the article that you are in reference to?
"It is unknown how many cone types bass have, but similar freshwater fish are known to have two cone types. This fact, coupled by some recent studies on bass, suggest that bass identify all of the colors we do, with the possible exception of blues and violets. This research also indicates that bass seem to see shades of green, yellow, and orange exceptionally well."
I think you meant to say that color is the reflection of light, I believe refraction is a little different.
Refraction, Defraction, Subfraction & Cofraction - I don't know what they call it, as long as there is no Math involved - I might still be able to follow this thread
A-Jay
Raul reply :
Lemme see what The Good Book has to say in this matter ..... Nope, there ain't no commandment sayin' : "Thou shall always match the trailer color to the jig color " which pretty much means you can do whatever you want.
aavery2 reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 10:52 AM, A-Jay said:Refraction, Defraction, Subfraction & Cofraction - I don't know what they call it, as long as there is no Math involved - I might still be able to follow this thread
A-Jay
Sorry man, back to the highly controversial topic of jig and trailer matching - Yes or No.
A-Jay reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 11:04 AM, aavery2 said:Sorry man, back to the highly controversial topic of jig and trailer matching - Yes or No.
No need to be sorry - It's up to me to keep up
So I say let's go with Yes & No
A-Jay
Bluebasser86 reply :
On 11/24/2014 at 7:27 AM, smallieking said:
also a great tip is for smallmouth make sure the skirt and trailer matches. i jig fish alot for smallies and ive never caught one on a crazy color combination.
Hmmm, our smallies don't follow that rule at all!
Maxximus Redneckus reply :
Just as with ladies ,,drapes dont have to match the carpet at all .bass likee surprises as humans do
*Hootie reply :
I make em match. I wanna look good out there. A hunter green GLX and a deep burgundy Scorpion....then a mis-matched jig and trailer?....never!
Hootie
roadwarrior reply :
I like everthing to match or compliment the total presentation.
Siebert Outdoors reply :
Does it have to match? No, and sometimes a non matching trailer out performs. With that said, generally I do match them.
Fishes in trees reply :
What you do, in the privacy of your own boat, regarding if your jig trailers match or contrast or complement or whatnot, is strictly between you and the bait monkey. If, right now, you can't match or contrast or complement any jig color you got with any trailer color you own, you just haven't spend enough money.
Right now, you should go buy a bunch of different colors and shapes of jig trailers. Have you considered that the current trailers you are using, aren't working as well as you might like, not because they don't match, or contrast, or complement or whatever, but just because they are old.
New, unused jig trailers are full of potential, used jig trailers harbor doubts, caused by not working as well as you might have hoped in the past.
There, now I have explained in simple, positive terms, why you need to go buy a bunch more jig trailers.
Being a helper is good.
*Hootie reply :
On 11/25/2014 at 12:09 AM, Fishes in trees said:What you do, in the privacy of your own boat, regarding if your jig trailers match or contrast or complement or whatnot, is strictly between you and the bait monkey. If, right now, you can't match or contrast or complement any jig color you got with any trailer color you own, you just haven't spend enough money.
Right now, you should go buy a bunch of different colors and shapes of jig trailers. Have you considered that the current trailers you are using, aren't working as well as you might like, not because they don't match, or contrast, or complement or whatever, but just because they are old.
New, unused jig trailers are full of potential, used jig trailers harbor doubts, caused by not working as well as you might have hoped in the past.
There, now I have explained in simple, positive terms, why you need to go buy a bunch more jig trailers.
Being a helper is good.
Now that is a great plan!
Hootie
Alonerankin2 reply :
As you can well see here, Fishes in trees, is the CEO, of the bait monkey company, a corporate conglomerate. The bait monkey always gets his way. Just roll with it, lol...
papajoe222 reply :
After reading this thread, I was surprised that there was no mention of the fact a fish's eye, because it perceives light differently, requires less light to both see and perceive color.On 11/24/2014 at 9:21 AM, jakob1010 said:http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-forums/topic/75803-are-bass-color-blind/
As an avid night fisherman, I can assure you that a bass can distinguish between a black and purple worm at night when you and I can not. It's also the reason that they can distinguish color differences in 30 or 40ft. Of water when a light meter will tell you that light penetration is only 17ft. that day and why salt water species living hundreds of feet below the surface have such vivid coloration.
How this relates to matching your trailer to the jig, I haven't a clue.
J Francho reply :
I like my trailers to match, Same as my belt and shoes.
WRB reply :
The bass don't care how you are dressed, it's how the jig is dressed that counts and contrast can work better than being matched, it's up to the bass to decide.On 11/25/2014 at 2:53 AM, J Francho said:I like my trailers to match, Same as my belt and shoes.
Tom
J Francho reply :
Every bass is crazy about a sharp dressed man, Tom.
Raul reply :
On 11/25/2014 at 3:11 AM, J Francho said:Every bass is crazy about a sharp dressed man, Tom.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wRHBLwpASw
WRB reply :
Thanks Raul, made my day!
Tom
J Francho reply :
Seriously, while I doubt it matters, I prefer to fish baits that appeal to me visually. That doesn't always mean "match" anything in particular. Like Tom says, the fish will tell you.
FunkJishing reply :
nope. what does matter though is the SMELL, SIZE, LOOK, and how it's worked in each situation.
WRB reply :
The majority of jig anglers on this forum fish black and blue combo jigs, not much of a discussion to make.
Black and blue is rarely a good color combo where I fish, except at night or cold water.
I use very few different weight jigs, 90% a custom 7/16 oz hair jig, 10% something different.
My preferred color combo's are; black, purple and brown tri color I call anywhere anytime and black, green, brown called spring craw. My trailers are black, brown or purple pork rind, 3" & 4" split tail custom cut.
If the water is a little greenish off color I start with a purple trailer, then brown and black if the first 2 choices don't work. Clear water I start with brown then purple, followed with black. I use both anytime anywhere and spring craw year around, adding black and blue at night and during the cold water period if the bass are very deep. The only other jig combo I use is my shad jig; black, chartreuse/green and white hair jig with white 3" pork trailer if a shad bite is happening and during the spawn. If I am targeting smallmouth I will add brown, chartreuse, red combo with brown 3" pork trailer.
The majority of my giant bass were caught using anytime anywhere hair jigs with pork trailers.
Tom
desmobob reply :
I would never dream of putting say, a nice blanched almond colored trailer on a taupe colored jig. Please! Likewise, a mauve trailer would clash horribly with a saffron jig that had some nice lavender highlights.
And never ever any white trailers after Labor Day!
Toodles,
Bob
JThoms38 reply :
LMAO heard that man!On 11/24/2014 at 9:27 AM, Diggy said:my socks dont even match
bigbill reply :
Example, I match my hot chartreuse spinnerbaits skirt with milktruese or chartruese trailer in dark stained to muddy conditions.
Why not the same with jigs. I use a green pumpkin jig with a green pumpkin trailer.
I haven't tried mixing jig and skirt colors yet? I wonder if another color would work better? With sparkles?
Sometimes breaking the norm could mean success?
Now you have me thinking, my natural crawls do have red sides and black backs? Combo colors? Black jig with a red craw trailer.
Forgive me I'm still learning jigs. But with colors I'm a color freak I admit it.
rtwvumtneer6 reply :
Sometimes I like to try something completely out of left field, and sometimes it works. We just had first thaw and cold, muddy water. Separately, big bulky black/blue jigs work, and charteuse black back square bills or white/charteuse spinnerbaits are also a go-to. So, when they aren't biting anything, I get creative. I'll throw a bulky black and blue trailer on a white chatterbait. Can I promise it will work? Nope. But it keeps my head in the game and, after all, I wasn't getting bit to begin with so what's the worst that can happen?
Sometimes just giving them something different is enough to get bit, especially on the high pressured waters I fish.
AMAC reply :
It all depends. I have mixed green pumpkin jigs with black n blue trailers, and vice versa. PB&J with green Pumpkin trailers. Mix and match for sure as long as it goes together if that makes sense lol.
CTBassin860 reply :
Ok...who gave these guys shovels??
OCdockskipper reply :
On 11/25/2014 at 2:53 AM, J Francho said:I like my trailers to match, Same as my belt and shoes.
J Francho on the front deck of the boat with white dress shoes, bell-bottom pants, a white belt, shirt open to the navel and an afro... reminds me of Coach Red Beaulieu in Coach Klien's flashback from "The Waterboy"
FishDewd reply :
Well, granted I've only just gotten into jigs, what do I know? 
Buuuut. Yes I do match mine! Why? Cause that's what I've seen others do so I followed by example! Is it necessary? No idea... I'll find out if/when I ever catch anything on a jig I guess! So far the fish around here haven't told me what they want in a jig. They're keeping the secret in the depths!
BassWhole! reply :
No. I do like to "compliment" the jig with a trailer in clear water and "contrast" it in darker murkier conditions., but I don't think the fish care. I do fish a black jig with a white trailer, and a purple jig with a green trailer in murky water, just because.
boostr reply :
There are some Pros out there that have different color jigs but only use a green pumpkin trailer for all of them. I kind of use that same logic unless I'm fishing dirty water then its bk/bl jig with a bk/bl trailer.
moguy1973 reply :
Wow, old thread from the dead.
riverat reply :
Although I usually try to match the trailer to the jig, it's not always necessary. I've done extremely well on a black and brown jig with a Larew Salt Craw in butterscotch in some of the Mississippi River oxbow lakes I fish. Also, I've had times where a Salt Craw in pumpkin pepper green glitter has produced on a black and blue jig.
In the end, just use what you have the most confidence in and you will probably catch more fish.
mattkenzer reply :
When I can add a Green Pumpkin with Copper Fleck soft plastic to any initial color presentation I will ..... so nope from me.
boostr reply :
On 2/21/2018 at 1:35 AM, moguy1973 said:Wow, old thread from the dead.
Lol, i did'nt even notice. Good threads never die
To think of it, I might have replied to this thread in 2014...
Munkin reply :
Generally I only use GP or black trailers on everything except swim jigs. Since I am usually deciding between a GP, brown, and black jig I created one with all three colors. This I call "Undecided" and with a GP trailer I have caught fish in every type of water clarity. Now my jig decision is boiled down to 3/8 or 1/2oz weight.
Allen
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