Explorer Folder Icons in Taskbar

Explorer shows all folder icons as its default icon (). If we open the Downloads folder, it doesn't appear as (on the Taskbar). But by Pin then Unpin, the original icon reveals!

I have custom icons for all the folders I've pinned to the taskbar as well as custom icons for File Explorer, Control Panel, external hard drives and various others. Here's how.
For Folders:
1. On desktop right click-new-shortcut. Click browse and go to the folder you want and select it. In the location box IN FRONT of the selected folder path type explorer (Using my downloads folder as an example, I selected my username in the tree, then downloads, so in the location box it read explorer C:\Users\glass\Downloads)
2. Name your shortcut. OK
3. Once the icon is made right click on it, select properties, select change icon, browse to your preferred icon and select it, apply, OK. (I have a folder full of customized icons. You can choose one of the Windows default icons or one of your own. There are thousands available for free to download on the web)
4. Right click on your new shortcut and select pin to taskbar. Then delete your desktop shortcut if you want. Whatever icon you selected will be on the taskbar.
NOTE: Do not be alarmed if you review the properties of your shortcut and see something different because Windows interprets it as
C:\Windows\explorer.exe C:\Users\glass\Downloads

Custom taskbar icon for File Explorer
Unpin the existing File Explorer icon from the taskbar. Then do the exact same steps as above but in the folder path box type
C:\Windows\explorer.exe Name it File Explorer, change its icon, and then pin to taskbar

For Disks: explorer x: (Where x is your drive letter)

A few other handy shortcut paths
control panel C:\Windows\System32\control.exe
device manager devmgmt.msc
event viewer %windir%\system32\eventvwr.msc /s
registry editor %windir%\regedit.exe
elevated command prompt C:\Windows\System32\cmd.exe (then right click-properties-advanced-check box that says run as administrator)
RUN %windir%\explorer.exe shell:::{2559a1f3-21d7-11d4-bdaf-00c04f60b9f0}
Settings explorer ms-settings:

Brink has put together a list of many other helpful GUID shortcuts. You can assign custom icons to them as well.

I know how to make a pin-able shortcut with a custom icon. The problem exactly is that!

1- Create a shortcut (manually, as steps you mentioned above).
2- Change its icon.
3- Pin it to Taskbar.
4- Open that folder from Taskbar. Explorer opens it in a new Window with its default icon.
5- Now Pin this opened Window (current opened Window, not the previously pinned shortcut).
6- Unpin the same pinned folder.
7- See! User custom icon appears.



Why doesn't Windows open pinned folders (shortcut) with its custom icon! It opens them with the Explorer default icon.

I didn't have such behaviour in Win 10.

Not on my Windows 10 machine. Here's a screenshot. For control panel (marked in red), I use the bug icon on my taskbar, but windows opens in the default icon for control panel. The same thing happens when I click on my custom icon for file explorer (Betty Boop marked in blue)
Windows 11 works exactly the same way.

Can you change your taskbar to "Never combine" mode? I had it always enabled (in W10). I think the problem is I didn't work with the "Combine" mode before W11. I bet I had my custom icon, not the Explorer default one! I don't have access to it now (W10 installed on my sisters' systems).