I wonder if UV coatings really provides an advantage? Maybe it is just a gimmick? Anyone have proof on the water??


I copied this from the aj lures website:

UV Reflective Coating?

We recommend using a UV coated lure when the water clarity is poor, or during low-light conditions.

"Fish appear to have quite well developed visual systems, comparable in some species to those of birds. Some have photoreceptors with peak sensitivities in the ultraviolet range. This may be because, like birds, they move about in a blue environment and need to contrast food sources or predators against a blue background." -Institute for Dynamic Educational Advancement

"UV light is short wavelength, high frequency energy from sun and stars, invisible to us, but visible to a variety of the fish species scientists have tested so far. About 60% of sunlight that cuts through the water�s surface is UV light. UV light penetrates clear water far deeper than human-visible light. Oceanographers have found UV light 700� deep. The scales of many prey fish reflect UV light. Bluegills are an example. Zooplankton, shrimp, squid, and many aquatic insects also reflect UV light. This silhouettes them against their blue-green background, making these creatures more visible to their predators. UV light also polarizes, especially early and late in the day. Diverse gamefish detect polarized light. UV light makes up nearly all the light in deep, clear water. Mud, algal blooms, and glacial till absorb and scatter UV light decreasing the depth which it penetrates. Long wavelength, low frequency, non-UV light � red and infrared � will cut through murkier water better." - CSI Paints

Sounds like some good information. I Paint my own crank baits and I am planning to use top coat with the UV Inhancer to experiment. See if I get ant more bites...

A few points.

1. I've done pretty well with regular plastics

2. The cost of the UV baits compared to normal is crazy

3. Yes Chapman won AOY last year using them but this year it didn't seem to help him or any of the other prostaffers that use them a lot.

I think its a gimmick.

$1-3 more per package and about half number of baits per package? PASS. Who do they think they are, Yamamoto?

I personally think it's a gimmick

If it were the next best thing you'd see everyone using it. It probably has a time and place just like everything else, I don't know if I'd call it a gimmick but it ain't the Holy grail of fishing either

Their baits are definitely not cheap! I didn't see that their lizards were UV, though, just their hard baits.

Funny you should mention Yamamoto. I knew him before his baits were big. Back in the early 90's he was my high school autoshop teacher's fishing partner at mead and powell. Ray, my teacher, refused to use his 'silly' baits, and didn't think they would ever take off. LOL

I use em all the time. As far as I can tell there are no negatives, only positives. I caught some fish recently one a 6" UV Green/Red Flake finesse worm about 6' deep and I also caught one about 5 lbs on a 10" UV Purple Power worm about 18' deep. Great baits.

They smell like Kerosene!

I know that solvent smell, but I have never tried any UV soft plastics. Do you think they all smell bad? What brand did you try?

UV soft plastics work well but they smell like gas to me so I don't care for them. Even night fishing I haven't seen a significant difference when fish next to a similar soft plastic.

I did some research on the smell. All of the UV powders I found were petroleum based, and when heated would for sure off-gas. I bet if you let the baits open air cure for a few days, the smell would go away, but if the advantage isn't there, then why bother, eh?

Fish don't seem to mind that solvent smell, though. My g-pa used to spray his lures with WD-40.

John

YEP!!!

It's like anything new. It will have it's 15 minutes of fame and take it's place on the shelf like every other bait out there. Confidence is what I like to throw...

Dr Loren Hill can start selling his Color-C-Lector again! (yes I know how much this dates me) Anyone else remember these?