Green Pumpkin Nemesis 2024
MO_TightLines reply :
Aright guys, I’m making this my first post after my introduction.
So I am mainly a soft plastics guy and keep it pretty simple. I always feel it helpful to let everyone know the types of water we fish to be better informed. I live in the heart of the Ozarks so I fish both lakes and rivers. Lake of the Ozarks, Stockton, Pomme De Terre, Table Rock etc...
Rivers such as The Gasconade, The Meramec, The Current, Jacks Fork & The Buffalo, etc...
So with that brief understanding of my home waters; here’s my dilemma. I’ve never really had success with straight up Green Pumpkin. After a couple hours of tossing it, I always find myself switching to Watermelon Red and generally start catching fish. I think I may be the only guy on earth who doesn’t have success with GP. I refuse to abandon it as I know it must be a staple.
So my question to you all and the wealth of knowledge here is this; is their a GP Variant that may work, (moreso for my confidence probably).
Thank You all in advance.
Jig Man reply :
I fish most of the lakes that you do. I use a lot of elaztech baits. Green Pumpkin is one of my regulars but I don't dwell on it. Green Pumpkin/Red works pretty well. I carry every color that Zman makes in the worm and TRD. I go with the color that is getting the most bites.
rosshilk reply :
Blue craw has green pumpkin with light blue. It’s an absolute killer. Strike king menace in blue craw is my personal favorite. Blue craw is overall probably my most productive color.
Russ E reply :
Green pumpkin is a fickle color for me. Sometimes the fish won't leave it alone. other times it will not draw a strike.
If it works the water is usually clear. I have had the best luck with baits that have black fleck.
RB 77 reply :
You might want to try the "Magic Craw" color. Its basically GreenPumpkin/ W or WO BlackFlake color with a iridescent finish to it. Super fishy color...
heavyduty reply :
GP with gold flake, GP with purple flake, GP with black flake are all three staples for me while smallmouth fishing. Blue craw mentioned above is also a good GP color for me. Your nemesis is GP, mine is watermelon....
TnRiver46 reply :
It’s all about angler confidence most of the time. It somehow translates to better presentation. One day when the bite is good , like catching a bunch of buck bass running the banks in spring, experiment with different colors . It’s easier to learn about how they react to different colors on a day when you have a large sample size. For some reason I fish baits a lot more effectively when I have already caught fish with them in the past. It makes me keep them in the strike zone longer because I know it has worked before. Sometimes it works against you but oh well . I have caught fish Of all kinds in any water color with green pumpkin tubes. I have confidence that if there are fish and crawdads in the water, some of the fish will hit a green pumpkin soft plastic. Now on the contrary if I didn’t have that confidence , it would be much trickier to get that first bite. Like when I fish a spinnerbait.......
MO_TightLines reply :
On 1/14/2019 at 12:03 PM, TnRiver46 said:It’s all about angler confidence most of the time. It somehow translates to better presentation. One day when the bite is good , like catching a bunch of buck bass running the banks in spring, experiment with different colors . It’s easier to learn about how they react to different colors on a day when you have a large sample size. For some reason I fish baits a lot more effectively when I have already caught fish with them in the past. It makes me keep them in the strike zone longer because I know it has worked before. Sometimes it works against you but oh well . I have caught fish Of all kinds in any water color with green pumpkin tubes. I have confidence that if there are fish and crawdads in the water, some of the fish will hit a green pumpkin soft plastic. Now on the contrary if I didn’t have that confidence , it would be much trickier to get that first bite. Like when I fish a spinnerbait.......
I very much agree with this TnRiver46. I think I’m probably to quick to fall back on my crutch(confidence) colors. I think when I’m really into the bass and the bite is good, I should probably have something in GP tied on.
MIbassyaker reply :
On 1/14/2019 at 10:08 AM, MO_TightLines said:Aright guys, I’m making this my first post after my introduction.
So I am mainly a soft plastics guy and keep it pretty simple. I always feel it helpful to let everyone know the types of water we fish to be better informed. I live in the heart of the Ozarks so I fish both lakes and rivers. Lake of the Ozarks, Stockton, Pomme De Terre, Table Rock etc...
Rivers such as The Gasconade, The Meramec, The Current, Jacks Fork & The Buffalo, etc...
So with that brief understanding of my home waters; here’s my dilemma. I’ve never really had success with straight up Green Pumpkin. After a couple hours of tossing it, I always find myself switching to Watermelon Red and generally start catching fish. I think I may be the only guy on earth who doesn’t have success with GP. I refuse to abandon it as I know it must be a staple.
So my question to you all and the wealth of knowledge here is this; is their a GP Variant that may work, (moreso for my confidence probably).
Thank You all in advance.
I am exactly the opposite. GP works everywhere for me all the time. Watermelon red? Can't buy a bite.
Is it the watermelon? Nope -- Watermelon seed, watermelon candy are also great. No problems there.
Is it the red? Nope. I can get bit just fine on other reds: Red shad, Delta red, red bug: again, no problem.
So what is it?
I conclude it's me. I'm the one who doesn't like watermelon red. For whatever reason -- maybe just chance, accident of history -- my opinion of it was formed from a handful of initial failures. And once the attitude took root, it began infecting me every time I tied the color on, affecting my patience, my concentration, my confidence, my willingness to persist before changing colors....from that point on, every 5 minutes trying watermelon red without a strike has only made it feel like yet more evidence watermelon red is ineffective, and I was right to dislike it all along.
So I don't buy or fish watermelon red anymore. And I don't worry much about it. I catch bass on other colors instead.
Sam reply :
Check out the two catalogs and note all of the various colors available from Zoom at the link below.
I like Green Pumpkin Black Flake.
http://virginiaguidebaitco.com/
Mobasser reply :
I made a thread about this also. I've quit throwing green pumpkin too. Because so many guys do well and love this color, I gave it a good shot. The only thing close that I use is watermelon/ red flake. Really don't even use it that much. I'll still use my grapes, blues, purple etc any day.
CroakHunter reply :
My pb came on a 12" plastic worm, green pumpkin color, other than that ive caught one other 3lber on it. Is it because those were the only 2 fish in the lake that would eat a green pumpkin worm? I doubt it. I Just dont throw it as much as my usual black, watermelon candy, or junebug. Maybe try starting with your confidence colors and catch a fish or 2 to determine there is active fish in the area then put in a green pumpkin and see if you can get some bites.
roadwarrior reply :
YOUR favorite color will work just fine.
813basstard reply :
So YOU want to catch them on GP, but the fish don’t want it (in your words)
Fish what you want and don’t catch them or fish what they want and catch them.
This should be a simple answer
Choporoz reply :
I don't think I've yet fished a situation where I thought there was any difference between gp and watermelon. I have convinced myself that some flakes (in either) help a little....but even then, I think it rarely, if ever, matters what color the flakes are.....just something to break up the solid silhouette, I guess
Bankbeater reply :
I seem to have better luck with green pumpkin in lakes and ponds that have a lot of vegetation growing in them.
Log Catcher reply :
I use a lot of Zoom soft plastics. If the water is in decent shape I have better luck with green pumpkin when it is cloudy and watermelon seed when it is sunny. I can't get a fish to look at watermelon red.
Arobb2012 reply :
I have better luck with green pumpkin if it has purple and green flakes in it. Some manufacturers call it gp magic or gp goby.
BassWhole! reply :
On 1/14/2019 at 10:08 AM, MO_TightLines said:Aright guys, I’m making this my first post after my introduction.
So I am mainly a soft plastics guy and keep it pretty simple. I always feel it helpful to let everyone know the types of water we fish to be better informed. I live in the heart of the Ozarks so I fish both lakes and rivers. Lake of the Ozarks, Stockton, Pomme De Terre, Table Rock etc...
Rivers such as The Gasconade, The Meramec, The Current, Jacks Fork & The Buffalo, etc...
So with that brief understanding of my home waters; here’s my dilemma. I’ve never really had success with straight up Green Pumpkin. After a couple hours of tossing it, I always find myself switching to Watermelon Red and generally start catching fish. I think I may be the only guy on earth who doesn’t have success with GP. I refuse to abandon it as I know it must be a staple.
So my question to you all and the wealth of knowledge here is this; is their a GP Variant that may work, (moreso for my confidence probably).
Thank You all in advance.
This is what you do. Take out all the GP plastics out of the bag and put the Watermelon Red ones in there. Problem solved.
MIbassyaker reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 3:44 AM, Arobb2012 said:I have better luck with green pumpkin if it has purple and green flakes in it. Some manufacturers call it gp magic or gp goby.
a lot of companies make a GP magic that is a sort of holographic silver flake that may reflect multiple colors depending on how the light hits it (Zoom is a good example). "Candy" usually has both green and purple, sometimes other colors in there too. I like 'em both.
For some reason, green flakes in my lake waters (usually pretty clear, or with light to moderate algae stain) seem to outperform any other flake color. Is it really the fish, or is it just me? I can't tell. But as long as I can't tell, may as well go with it.
In fact, my favorite color in the world is a light/medium pumpkin with green flake that many companies don't sell. Best example of a bait I can find with regularity in this color is the Berkley Chigger Craw. I wish I could get every plastic bait in that color. Sometimes I find a "rootbeer" or amber green that is close, but a little darker and redder than I prefer.
KDW96 reply :
On 1/14/2019 at 2:57 PM, Sam said:Check out the two catalogs and note all of the various colors available from Zoom at the link below.
I like Green Pumpkin Black Flake.
http://virginiaguidebaitco.com/
Where would a guy be able to see the actual colors,other than color number? Zoom or ?
The Bassman reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 7:37 AM, MIbassyaker said:
In fact, my favorite color in the world is a light/medium pumpkin with green flake that many companies don't sell. Best example of a bait I can find with regularity in this color is the Berkley Chigger Craw. I wish I could get every plastic bait in that color. Sometimes I find a "rootbeer" or amber green that is close, but a little darker and redder than I prefer.
Maybe this is what you're looking for. Regular pumpkin (not green)?
HeyCoach reply :
I haven’t had any success with a lot of colors, so I know it’s me and not the color.
WRB reply :
Welcome to BR, good starting post!
Green pumpkin isn't a color that everyone makes the same, varies greatly between soft plastic companies. Like most colors everyone has their favorites and green pumpkin tops a lot of anglers favorite along with black-blue.
Oddly neither green pumpkin or black-blue is popular out west outside of the Delta where both are popular.
I use green pumpkin from 2 companies; Yamamoto #330 and Berkley's Chigger Craw green pumpkin w/black flake for jig trailers. The lakes I fish have clear water similar to Table Rock, so they should work there. You have a decent population of green sunfish and bluegill that green pumpkin tends to replicate. I prefer the 3" Chigger craw and 4" Hula grubs for jig trailers, up size to 4" and 5" during pre spawn.
Good luck,
Tom
MIbassyaker reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 8:22 AM, The Bassman said:Maybe this is what you're looking for. Regular pumpkin (not green)?
Yup -- regular pumpkin, not green, but with green flake. GYCB's version is another one of those that's darker and more reddish than I like, but I use it in the 4"senko like you have here, also the hula grub, and 5" single-tail grub.
I use these (relatively) redder pumpkins in brown/tannic stained water, which I find in my local river systems. The green flake I like for (somewhat clearer) algae-stained waters that I find often in my local natural lakes.
Are my preferences rational? I honestly have no idea. They simply exist.
Arobb2012 reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 7:37 AM, MIbassyaker said:
For some reason, green flakes in my lake waters (usually pretty clear, or with light to moderate algae stain) seem to outperform any other flake color. Is it really the fish, or is it just me? I can't tell. But as long as I can't tell, may as well go with it.
I have the same situation in my lakes and rivers also. I think I might try out another "Magic" color plastic this year to see what the results are.
fin reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 8:16 AM, KDW96 said:Where would a guy be able to see the actual colors,other than color number? Zoom or ?
https://zoombait.com/colors/
It's better if you can find someone local that stocks a bunch of colors, sometimes that's the small mom & pop store, not the big box store. You might pay a little more, but it can be worth it. A lot of colors look good in a picture, but bad in person and vice versa. I like to be able to hold one up to the light.
Munkin reply :
I spent 18 weeks in good old MO for the Army at FT. Leonard Wood and found that overall GP was the best color to use anywhere I went except one place. Mostly I fished the ponds on FLW but also fished LOZ, Meramec, and the Big Piney and the results were similar. Meramec was more stained than the other places so black w/red flake worked better but GP was #2. Overall my best colors/baits for the state were: Baby brush hogs= GP and watermelon candy, Senko= Natural shad, baby bass, and GP, Lizards= Zoom PB&J, tequila sunrise, and a Madman bait in Volcano.
I loved MO as there were so many places to fish and everyone with a house or doublewide trailer had a 2 acre bond in their yard. What I didn't like was the cottonmouth I ran into at one of my fishing holes.
Allen
Sam reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 8:16 AM, KDW96 said:Where would a guy be able to see the actual colors,other than color number? Zoom or ?
You will have to go on the Internet to a Zoom site or one of the tackle stores that sell the Zoom products.
Of course, with the warehouse 40 minutes away I can go and see all of the colors which is a lot of fun.
And you can copy the color number and description and go on a Google search to see what comes up.
Have fun!
MO_TightLines reply :
I was looking at some GP Variants yesterday at our local Bass Pro and really liked the looks of two variants. GP with Blue Flake & Purple Flake really seemed to bring it alive.
Would you use the Blue Flake on clearer water and the Purple Flake on a little more stain as it seemed to darken the GP up somewhat?
FCPhil reply :
Maybe the fish really are picky enough in you area to eat watermelon (a green) but not GP (a little darker green) but I think there is a more likely explanation. This gets me all time:
People are good at picking up on patterns, it is often how we learn. If we have a few fluke failures (no pun intended), on a lure, we assume it is a pattern, and not an unlikely series of flukes. Once we begin to be suspicious of a pattern though, we are conscious of it and then more readily recognize times that confirm our pattern than not.
For example, I have lures I have tried just a few times and never caught a fish on. Since they didn’t work the first couple time, I feel like they don’t work on my waters. Whenever I pick them up, I’m not very confident on it, throw it some and if it catches, I say “it’s a fluke success”, if it doesn’t catch, I say “it’s a failure like I thought”. The truth is though, even when I fish my most productive lures, there are stretches of time they haven’t produced just as long of longer than the low confidence lure. But, since I initially gained confidence on it, I chalk up those bad stretches to tough conditions, not the lure.
Im not saying your doing necessarily doing this, I’m just saying minds have a way of playing tricks on us.
BassWhole! reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 9:11 AM, Sam said:You will have to go on the Internet to a Zoom site or one of the tackle stores that sell the Zoom products.
Of course, with the warehouse 40 minutes away I can go and see all of the colors which is a lot of fun.
And you can copy the color number and description and go on a Google search to see what comes up.
Have fun!
Wait, the Zoom factory is near Richmond? How did I miss this?....
fin reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 9:01 PM, reason said:Wait, the Zoom factory is near Richmond? How did I miss this?....
They said warehouse, not factory. That caught my eye too.
Their website says they're based in Watkinsville, GA. Google says Bogart, GA, which is nearby. I noticed once on Amazon it said "Product of China". I just read a *** article called "Inside the Zoom Bait Company Factory" from 2010 that didn't say specifically where, but it mentioned Georgia. I also learned the name Zoom was the nickname of one of the factory workers named Zimmerman.
TOXIC reply :
Ye old color debate
I can tell you that Yamamoto's #1 nationwide selling color is 297 Green Pumpkin Black Fleck. Personally, I have fished that color from Canada to Florida in all water conditions and colors. Normally it will produce everywhere. For whatever reason you have developed a confidence color, that is the color you need to throw. I have serious fishing friends who all fish Yamamoto pretty religiously and every one of them has a different confidence color. 
It's my personal opinion that Yamamoto's 297 works in the biggest number of water colors and conditions. Can you refine the color selection to the current conditions and do better than the 297. You bet ......but most want a universal color that will work in the biggest number of situations.
MO_TightLines reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 11:12 PM, TOXIC said:Ye old color debate
I can tell you that Yamamoto's #1 nationwide selling color is 297 Green Pumpkin Black Fleck. Personally, I have fished that color from Canada to Florida in all water conditions and colors. Normally it will produce everywhere. For whatever reason you have developed a confidence color, that is the color you need to throw. I have serious fishing friends who all fish Yamamoto pretty religiously and every one of them has a different confidence color.
I think you and most other's are spot on. I believe at some point in time (to many years to actually put my finger on it), I've had a really good fishing day using Watermelon Red & gained confidence in it. I would say it had something to do with when i was a boy, my father only used two colors. All i ever saw him fish with was a Watermelon Red & Tequila Sunrise Berkley Powerbait 7" Worms & he had tremendous success with those.
I am determined though to stick with GP for those off colored waters and cloudy overcast days.
Munkin reply :
Almost forgot about the Spots! For some reason the spotted bass liked the non-natural colored baits. That tequila sunrise color just slayed them.
Allen
Comfortably Numb reply :
Color doesn't matter.
Sam reply :
On 1/15/2019 at 9:01 PM, reason said:Wait, the Zoom factory is near Richmond? How did I miss this?....
No, but the distribution center is near Richmond.
They were the first distributors of Zoom products when Zoom started its business.
Check out the Virginia Guide catalogs and you will see all of the products they carry.
It is like going to a candy store.
No idea where you are located but if you get to Richmond you have to make it one of your stops.
Troy85 reply :
Watermelon/Red Flake is my go to color in the green category. I don't have as much luck with green pumpkin.
evilcatfish reply :
On 1/14/2019 at 10:08 AM, MO_TightLines said:Aright guys, I’m making this my first post after my introduction.
So I am mainly a soft plastics guy and keep it pretty simple. I always feel it helpful to let everyone know the types of water we fish to be better informed. I live in the heart of the Ozarks so I fish both lakes and rivers. Lake of the Ozarks, Stockton, Pomme De Terre, Table Rock etc...
Rivers such as The Gasconade, The Meramec, The Current, Jacks Fork & The Buffalo, etc...
So with that brief understanding of my home waters; here’s my dilemma. I’ve never really had success with straight up Green Pumpkin. After a couple hours of tossing it, I always find myself switching to Watermelon Red and generally start catching fish. I think I may be the only guy on earth who doesn’t have success with GP. I refuse to abandon it as I know it must be a staple.
So my question to you all and the wealth of knowledge here is this; is their a GP Variant that may work, (moreso for my confidence probably).
Thank You all in advance.
I fish a lot of the same waters you do, and while I do like original green pumpkin, I've found the following variants to get some action in our area: GP candy, GP purple, okeechobee craw, gp black/blue, roadkill and roadkill blue. Of course, these are general names and some companies will have their own name for each.
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