Bead size guide
Best Bead Size & Colour for Coho in Blown Out Water
Quick answer: a 19mm bead (16–19mm) in Chartreuse.
Big and bright below a clear trib; otherwise wait.
The acrobat — pound for pound, the fighter of the family. That makes reading the water the first real decision on any Coho trip — before size, before colour. Blown Out conditions change what the fish can actually see and how far a bead has to be noticed from — and the right size follows from that. Big and bright below a clear trib; otherwise wait. For coho specifically, that means leaning on chartreuse in the 16–19mm range rather than a one-size-fits-all pick. Quick ID if you're new to the species: black mouth, white gums; spots on upper tail lobe only. Use the 19mm recommendation below as your first tie-on, then let the fish tell you whether to size up or down. Keep a few sizes and colour families on hand so you can adjust without a trip back to the truck. The full picture for coho across every water condition — low, prime, high and blown out — is available in the interactive Bead Match tool, linked below this recommendation.
Shop coho beads for blown out water
Common questions
- What size bead should I use for coho in blown out water?
- 19mm is the starting point (16–19mm covers the range), sized for blown out conditions specifically — Big and bright below a clear trib; otherwise wait.
- What colour bead works best for coho when the water is blown out?
- Chartreuse are the recommended families for this combination. Big and bright below a clear trib; otherwise wait.
- Does the right bead change if the coho water condition changes?
- Yes — Coho respond differently across low/clear, prime, high/coloured and blown-out water. This page covers blown out specifically; use the Bead Match tool to see the full breakdown across all four conditions.
