Murphy doesn’t get too complicated when selecting his crankbait colors, and he’s used his system for good results around the country.
“You can get by with two basic colors when using each style of crankbait or manufacturer,” Murphy said. “I’m either going to use a shad or chartreuse color with different combos such as shad with a black or blue back, or chartreuse with a black or blue back.
“It doesn’t matter where you’re fishing or how deep, one of those basic color combinations will almost always draw strikes from the bass.”
Murphy also prefers using the natural shad color combos in clear water and the chartreuse combos in murky or stained water.
Although color doesn’t usually make a lot of difference to him, Murphy has found that bass in some lakes seem to have different preferences and will hit some baits better than others. In some of the Arkansas lakes, like Lake Hamilton, Quachita and other clear lakes, they won’t touch a crankbait with a rattle in it. But they will hit a Wiggle Wart, which is not real popular down here.
“Different baits will work on different lakes, so don’t be stuck on any one lure or fishing technique,” Murphy said. “While Pickwick is the only deep highland lake in Mississippi, the rest are primarily lowland lakes and the bass don’t get as deep. They’ll usually be found in depths of 8 to 14 feet deep from June through the summer months somewhere along the ledges.”
Deep Little N’s, DD 22s and the Rapala DT series crankbaits are all prime bets when those bass are on the ledges in that depth range.
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