Top 10 Ned Rig Colors

The Ned rig is one of the hottest bass fishing techniques out there and for good reason. It simply catches fish. It absolutely catches numbers of bass, but it also catches size. In 2018, Mark Daniels Jr won the BASS Elite on Lake Oahe using mainly the ole Ned. Let’s dive into my top 10 colors of Ned baits since we are going to all be using it (or you better be).

 

1. Green Pumpkin – This is an easy one. It doesn’t matter brand. It is simple. It works in the most circumstances. Sales of this color lap anything else in a Ned bait.
2. Goby Bite – This is basically a great minnow color. You need to have a few baitfish colors in your arsenal and Goby Bite is a fishy looking one. It does mimic a number of gobies I have seen but looks like a darker colored minnow too.
3. Green Pumpkin Flash – We are just talking about the number one color with silver hologram flake added to it. The “pop” of that flash definitely can be the difference at times.
4. Bamer Craw – Ok, here we go with a variation of the number one color again. This is green pumpkin top with an orange bottom. There is no doubt this is a crawfish color when you see it. You need to have an orange accent craw color in your top 5 for sure.
5. Golden Shiner Core – This is the top core shot color for my tastes, and it has to be in my top 5. It has a gold shimmer in the core and is surrounded by clear with some flash to it. I have already caught a number of smallmouth on it, which is funny to me since I initially thought this would be a great color for Florida waters.
6. GP Blue Flash Tail – Bluegill are a favored snack of bass and this color is the best bluegill tail color imitation I have seen. It mimics the baby bluegill and it a no brainer for summertime Ned rig anglers.
7. Watermelon Red Core – Believe it or not, I don’t throw a ton of regular Watermelon Red in many soft plastics. This color is different. I love it and love it in a Ned bait. Great in the pre spawn and during the spawn.
8. Bluetonium Green Pupmpkin Core – This is a different blue tinted color that is a great subtle baitfish and bluegill type color. I have had some good success on this color in a short amount of time.
9. Fried Melon – This new two-color laminate is going to get in the action quickly for me. It is a watermelon type color on one side and a clear pumpkin type color on the other side. It can be used with either side up. Going to get a lot of work from me in the summer and fall.
10. Hillbilly Magic – Another baitfish color had to be in the mix to round out the top 10 and this is the one. It has a greenish tint to it, so it blends well with the fertile green waters of many lakes. The gold and silver hologram flakes are few enough that it gives the bait just a touch of pop but does not overpower it. This is a summer, fall and even wintertime color for me.

 

You can see that in my top 10, I have three different types of color options. Bluegill, baitfish, and crawfish are the categories. Most all colors fall into one of these categories. Even Pinkalicious is a baitfish color for me. The point is to make sure you have a few colors in each of these three categories and you will be set with Ned baits.