Once you love it, they take it away!

Yup, every time I find a particular color pattern in a lure, it takes maybe 6 months before that particular color/pattern becomes incredibly hard to find locally.
 
This happened to me with the Thunderstick jr., which I pretty much have to mail order to get the pattern that kills for me around here (black back/prism flash sides), and I'm curious to find out if my other main example has happened to any of you.
 
Through trial and error I've found that the color/shading often labeled as "Blue/Pearl/Shad" or some combination of those colors, is the highest producing color pattern day-in and day-out on the three rivers. This has been true for plastics and Powerbait. Yes, I've tried other colors/patterns side by side just to see if it was true, even on the same school of fish, and every time it was.
 
This seems kinda weird since the top baitfish in the rivers are Gizzard Shad and Emerald Shiners, but even when I use plastics/Powerbait patterned to look exactly like Emerald Shiners, the Pearl/Blue/Shad produces more fish.
 
So of course, I'm having more and more trouble finding this color combination on the shelves. Even at Cabela's I couldn't find it in either Powerbait or Gulp.
 
Is this part of the reason why guys start pouring their own plastics? 8-)

LBG - Do you happen to notice these colors working more at low light?   
 
I had a course or two about 15 years ago, dealing with rods and cones in your eyes.  I have also read, though most fish are different than each other, all have rods and cones similar to ours.  In generic terms, cones see colors in light conditions and species have different amounts so are sensitive to different colors.  Rods are for low light use, your "night vision" so to speak.  Rods are very sensitive to blue (why blue powerbait is needed during the epic run of 2014).  Notice when you are driving at night, the blue info signs on the highway are the brightest (reflective paint helps too).  Your rods do not pick up red as well (unless it is a light).  Even notice the green traffic light is "brighter" than the red at night.  That is why the head lamps and other have the red light.  Your eyes will adjust faster in the dark after retying with the red light, than using the full spectrum "white" light. 
 
Why blue works for fishing, I am not really sure.  Some fish don't even have the cones that pick up blue, and comes in as a gray.  Which might best represent the color on the backs of gizzard shad and other bait fish?  Also, in stained water, that gray will actually stick out more to some species than a bright orange or other color that sticks out to us.  The stained water also makes it darker in the deeper areas, so even though it is light out, it could be rather dark 10-20 feet deep.
 
Here is a good link about human eyes.  http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/vision/rodcone.html  Google around about fish color spectrum.  A few good articles out there too. 
 
I totally agree about finding something good then it changes.  Seems to happen in everything.  Discontinue the one that worked, and now you are forced to buy a dozen new ones to find the new one that works...  That's my theory. 

Vioxx, nothing comes close
 
Ford's straight truck 6, indestructible
 
 

fish5000
 Also have an all glass minnow trap and no, neither are for sale at any price, even though many have tried]. Check it out. I'm sure you'll be entertained and perhaps tempted!

All glass?! Oh wow, I don't think I'[ve ever seen one of those, share a pic if you can, please?

Seems like Rapala got rid of their baby bass colored Husky Jerks.  I used to catch tons of trout on the 2.5" bass colored Husky Jerks, the closest thing they have now is a dark perch type color which just isn't the same.

Bajas were ugly. Just sayin'

luvinbluegills

fish5000
 Also have an all glass minnow trap and no, neither are for sale at any price, even though many have tried]. Check it out. I'm sure you'll be entertained and perhaps tempted!

All glass?! Oh wow, I don't think I've ever seen one of those, share a pic if you can, please?

I apologize for the long delay in a response Luvinbluegills. I'm off/on the computer sometimes for weeks at a time. I'll have to get my wife's camera as mine doesn't have the tech to post pictures on - line. I've been thinking about my previous post and I actually might be interested in selling the glass minnow trap, but if I did I would want to take it to the person and present it. That way, we would both know what kind of condition it's in. If mailed, someone could always say they received it damaged. It never saw water and is in immaculate condition as is the great majority of my lures and other fishing paraphernalia. I've seen ~ 6 different types, all varying in color of the glass, length, shape, size and # of holes in the jar.