Summer is slipping into fall and that means streamers for Smallmouth Bass. Soon the bass will be feeling the water temps coming down and they will start looking for nice meaty opportunities to hopefully build up a little for the cold winter months. One of my favorite fall streamers is the Murdich Minnow. Actually, it works well in the mid-summer season and smaller versions can even work well in the spring. The Murdich Minnow was originally tied for Stripers by Bill Murdich. I think I ran across this fly for the first time in 2006, maybe 2007, can’t remember specifically. However, by 2010 it was showing up in fly shops across the country as a great fly for Large and Smallmouth Bass. It is normally tied on a large gap stinger hook such as the Tiemco 8089 but I have tied them on Mustad 3366 and had great results. The great thing about this fly is that is can easily be scaled down or up if you want a smaller or larger version. As I mentioned, I tie them in a version that is about 1 1/2 to 2 inches long (I call them a Baby Murdich) for earlier season Smallmouth. 
In the fall months (September, October and into November) I prefer a 3 or 4 inch version and sometimes even a 5 inch fly. There are also lots of variations on the Murdich using different materials and different techniques that you might like. Search around, there is a wealth of information on the Murdich Minnow.
There are two things I like to point out about this fly. The first is that when you are tying it you want to make certain that the tail and flash materials are secured very well to the shank of the hook. The accompanying video shows a couple of techniques to make this happen. This fly can take a lot of abuse but if the underlying body material is not secured the will the body and fly will rotate on the hook shank while you cast and fish this fly; no fun. I mention in the video to use a small file to rough up the hook shank before attaching the thread. I wanted to mention in the video, but it slipped my mind, that an Emory board will also work to rough up the shank. It might take a few flies to get to the point where you know the flies are secure but it is worth it. I have some flies in my box that are at least ten years old. Pretty chewed up but they still catch fish and are still solid. The second thing is that this fly is unweighted. 
Meaning the only weight to it is in the hook. Because of the bucktail in this fly the Murdich Minnow tends to be sort of neutrally buoyant or at the least sink very very very slow. Initially, it might not get underwater at all when you fish it for the first time, you might be thinking you are fishing topwater. It will take a while for the water to soak into the materials that will absorb water. You can help this along by holding the fly underwater and giving is a gentle squeeze around the body and a shake underwater to help remove the air in the materials and air trapped along the tail fibers. Either way, you soon have a fly that when you cast it and perform an initial strip will slip underwater just fine. However, it will not get much deeper than about six inches, especially in current. If you are fishing stillwater you could possible let it sink lower but as soon as you start retrieving it the fly will come up shallow again. If you are needing the fly to get down a couple feet you would be best to shorten your leader and use either a sink tip line or some Tungsten leader material. You can add weight to the fly but remember adding any weight to the fly will result in altering the action of the fly. If you love chasing Small or Largemouth Bass this time of year I highly recommend you tie a few Murdich Minnow streamers, in multiple colors, and get them in the water. A fun time will be had! – Enjoy.
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If you would like to purchase some Murdich Minnow Streamers there are a number for sale (while supplies last).
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As always, if you have any questions about this fly (or any other) you can leave a comment on Dressed Irons or any of the videos I have produced and I will help in anyway I can. Enjoy!
Remember….. It’s Fly tying….. If you’re not having fun, You’re Doin’ It Wrong.