When choosing colors, I like to look at the "prey" the fish feed on for a given lake. I try to stick with the "sunfish" look on lakes without a high population of bullhead, which means the black/brown/pumpkin colors. If there is a high population of bullheads, I tend to go with the black/blue/browns, since largemouth do feed on these fish.
I "do" trim the weed guard on most jigs, depending on how long it is on a particular jig, otherwise it will become a "fish guard". :)
Jig sizes, well, that depends on the application and fish mood. For thicker weeds (working on top) and a slow bite I tend to stay with less than a 3/8 oz. Otherwise, I use 3/8oz and larger. I have used up to a 1 1/2 oz jig on Guntersville, and some milfoil around the lakes here just to get into the thicker stuff.
Jig head types, well.. there are a few different kinds, but I stick with the more weedless designs such as the Booyah boo jig, and some custome made jigs I get from down south. I do use the strike king jigs when the weed cover is not as thick, and around wood. The rattle for me is key, since I have found sometimes the fish like to hear different sounds on the rattles, so I have several different kinds of those too. Sometimes, they don't want any rattling. :)
Down south, the football head works well, since some reservoirs do not have much weed cover, and you are working rocks and ledges.
I think most of the other colors are to catch fisherman, not the fish. :)
White is an exception, which works great in ultra-clear water on overcast days, and great on overcast days in the fall for some reason. I'm not sure what that's all about, but I go with it.
I will have to give white a little more time. I have had good luck on most every color but some are very spotty.
Very cool. I will have to give them a try and see what I learn on the water. Thanks..