I do a lot of lure fishing for perch and I love it . Mobility is key , and if the fish are at home and interested you will know first cast . In warmer weather I use jigs (typically 2-5 g) and hooks in size 4 to 1/0 . In cold water , drop shot is better as you can fish slower and deeper- I use a weight of 5- 8g and hooks from 6s to 2s.
Lures ? It's common to use huge great things but I rarely need to - and as a bonus I have noticed I get the same, or perhaps more decent pike on perch size lures as I did on the big shads I used to use. And for both species a big barbless single is so much easier to deal with than an array of treble ironmongery , and better for the fish I think .
Patterns - I have loads but simple paddle tails in yellow , silver , gold and green are nearly always effective . I increasingly use crayfish/ creature baits, and the key thing to note is that lures which look like an exact model of a crayfish simply do not work very well , or often at all. The reason is simple - look at a fleeing crayfish and it is an amorphous green/grey/black lump and lures which replicate that look are deadly . I use Urban Prey crayfish in black/red, black/yellow and watermelon (green/red) . I cannot over -emphasise how slow you should fish lures - newcomers tend to reel them back as if they are Mepps or they furiously sink and draw dropshot rigs. Work the worm , not the weight the Americans say - and they are dead right.
I have even had crayfish lures taken static - it happened again yesterday , as I am starting my 'winter perch campaign' as I'd say if I had a weekly column in Angling Times . I'd also be able to say I was 'field testing ' lures , rather than just trying summat new
