Every area, as well as every lake has been effected by the “metal myth”. I have been working on a good definition for this term for a week now, and the best way to explain it is to dispel it. Not as complicated as it sounds.
As far back as the 1980’s right through the early years of the new millineum, GOLD ruled supreme on Lake Erie. If your tackle box didn’t have something gold in it, the old timers would say you should just go home. Golden Nuggets were in their heyday, everyone wanted them, as well as gold Erie Dearies. You needed gold blades on your crawler harnesses, and you better make sure you had some of those gold and black Hot n Tots in your box, too.
Today on Erie, just like in the recycling centers, copper madness has taken over. Copper this, and copper that. Purple on copper, perch on copper, and even copper panties, pink or silk. You got copper, I got copper.
Up on Saginaw Bay the SILVER rush continues to this day. Tackle companies who only produced blades in copper and gold, were told basically, if you want to sell up here, you better invest in some silver. What are the favorite Tots on the ‘Bay? Silver and Black, Blue Herringbone (silver with blue squiggles), and Captain’s Choice (blue, pink and SILVER). These continue to be hot producers.
Blooey, hogwash….just not so. At least to the point that its not entirely the flash of the metal blade that counts the most. Is it true that some metals produce better than others? Yes it is, but only when you consider the water clarity, or if its cloudy or the sun is shining bright. Lets face it, if you are up on Saginaw Bay, or down here on Erie, if you only carry two colors of blades, then you will only catch fish on two colors of blades.
If you carry all metal finishes, wanna lay odds that you will catch fish on all three types? If you don’t, I will take that bet. I want my blades to match my finishes in most situations.
Here are some purple examples:
Purple has been hot, and the sun is out, the waters are clear, you can keep the gold and copper in the box, give me silver. I want the blade, call it the shiny factor, to come through. When the blade hits the water, I want to see a bright purple shine around the spin rotation of the blade. If the blade was copper for an example, the brightness of the blade would be less, and fish wouldn’t notice it a long way off.
Its kinda cloudy out there, but purple is still on all the reports. Give me purple on gold then. Kinda cloudy, kinda sunny. I still get my shine from the gold, but the overall effect is less than the silver.
Dark and cloudy days, stained water, or when the mayflies are up from the bottom. Time to hammer them with copper. Its a darker presentation, and that copper flash, mirrors the colors of the mayflies more than silver for sure, and lots better than gold.
Apply it to perch bait patterns where gold blades rock the best results. Walleyes are hitting on shiners, give them the silver approach until you get your limit.
I can take my gold and copper blades and catch limits on Saginaw Bay, I can take the Bay’s silver foundation to Erie and do the same. With Michigan new 3 rod per person law, you can give them two of each until you figure out what they want the best that day. Become a myth buster.