UV Blast

[Shaunm81]

I just started using this UV Blast in my plastics but can  fish still see the actual color of the lure? Say for example  I make Watermelon Red and I add a tiny bit of the UV to it can fish still see the actual Watermelon Red color? Does the
UV Blast  only kick in at a certain depth in the water column?  I got thinking about this I thought I should ask instead of me spending all that time making special colors and then all the uv blast take over and ruin the baits actual color.  Can it he used in Flourescent Colors like the Orange and Pinks and stuff.  Is this UV effective for Crappie?  That's what I  mainly  fish for but a little Bass also.  Thanks guys

[Lines]

Good question Shaunm81, I am also curious about this.

[DF]

 I like to use UV blast in birght/ flourescent colors, it really gives them a boost.

[ctom]

The uv blast will be seen as well as the colors, but I think our fresh water fish only see colors in varying degrees of white, black and grey with trouts, chars and salmons being the exceptions. Not certain on salt species but UV enhancers are used in almost all salt tackle applications so there has to be some credence to it  and UV blast can be seen as deep as 900 feet in open clear ocean so its some interesting stuff. I use it in every batch of plastic I make.

You can over-do using the stuff and your baits will take on an eerie bluish/purple surface color when that's happened. In a 4 ounce batch I use a little scoop of it about the size of a book-match head. That's it. It concentrates the natural uv portion of natural light, hence the term enhancer. Since moonlight is simply reflected sunlight the uv enhancer also works well on nights where there is strong moonlight. Dirty water can act as a limiter for how deep the enhancer works with plastics but from what I have read even dirty water up to 50 feet can have enough ambient natural light for it to work.

Since fluorescent colors are also light-gathering colors, UV enhancer can help strengthen those colors but UV enhancer does absolutely zip for glow in the dark plastics other than to offer the same surface sheen if there is adequate natural light.

[efishnc]

The exact effects of UV enhancements are speculative as humans cannot experience what fish (or other animals) experience, but we know they have UV receptors (which we do not) among color receptors in their eyes.

Based on personal experiments, the effects of UV enhancement are magnified as the amount of visible light diminishes.  The easiest way to see this is to take a UV enhanced bait (away from strong visible light) and expose it to UV light to make it "glow".  Then, keeping the UV exposure constant, move the bait into visible light and you'll see the enhancement wane and actual colors become the prominent display.   

Think of UV factors as a flashlight... in the dark, it has quite a noticeable effect, but at midday the effect is overpowered by the natural light.

[ctom]

In freshwater fish it is known that the trouts, salmons and chars have advanced uv receptors in their eyes and prime predator fish such as pike, musky and walleye also seem to have better uv receptors. Bass and crappies have the receptors and at certain times under certain water conditions I have toyed with using baits with and without the enhancer and have seen first hand that it can help while fishing crappies.

Dave brings up a very valid point regarding the enhancement being speculative. Humans can make observations, some directly while fishing and others science based, but until people and fish can figure out a way to communicate clearly how this stuff as well as fluorescence and glow in the dark is merely assumption.

[Lines]

So it actually does not glow in the original color that it is added to? I mean, if added to green it glows green? If added to blue it glows blue?
Can the original color be determined by the glow effect?

[efishnc]

I believe the 'glow' is actually a reflection/refraction of the UV light striking it, and this is completely independent of the underlying colors... but the underlying colors will become more and more apparent as visible light increases.

[ctom]

The color you'll see when you're seeing the uv working will be a purplish blue on top of the plastic's color. The best place to see what uv does is in the water. Swin a uv bait at about 2 feet and you'll see the uv working. If the water is super clear, run it down about five feet. When the bait is in your hands in full sun all you'll see is the plastic's original color. The only glow that uv adds is that which is reflected light as Efish mentions. UV will in no way make a glow pigment glow any better and can in some cases cause a glow color to be weak because is is reflecting essential uv rays..

[Shaunm81]

Hmmm very interesting thanks guys.   So fish will still see the actual colors also.     I noticed that Do-It has it in different forms and some that will UV glow in different colors instead of just the blue but it's not available in a powder form to be added to the plastisol mix.  Yeah I think I'm going to start adding this uv to my mix all the time.   I  added it to Flourescent Orange earlier and I got a color that wasn't blue.  Maybe perhaps it is because of it being the Flourescent coloring making the uv different than Blue?  Or maybe I didn't add quite enough? Thanks guys lots of good information here.

[ctom]

This is the only plastic compatible uv enhancer that Do-It sells. Don't confuse UV enhancer with glow pigments.....entirely different animals.

https://store.do-itmolds.com/Colorant-Glitter-Pearls_c_254.html?itemid=1113&lt_c=1&quickcart=1

[Shaunm81]

Yeah  I know that is the only type that can be added to plastisol but I was meaning they have uv worm dip.  I know totally different stuff I was meaning this stuff.   I wish they could have uv like this for plastisol mix in different colors  than just  blue  https://store.do-itmolds.com/UV-Blast-Worm-Dip_p_812.html