Weedless Murdich Minnow SBS

I have had several requests for a SBS for the weedless Murdich Minnow.  Last night, I shot some quick photos showing the tying process, so here goes.  Below is the recipe for the exact version I tied for this demo.

Hook - Size 1 Extra Wide Gap worm hook
Thread - pink 6/0
Weed Guard - 25lb mono
Underwing - gray bucktail
Wing - Orvis Sparkle Hair, Rainbow Pearl (looks purple) over White Pearl
Cheeks - Fuchsia Laser Dub
Body - Silver metallic Estaz
Shank - 20mm Flymen articulated shank
Color - Sharpies to add color to Estaz body (purple/black)
Head - Size 6 Flymen Fish Mask with 6mm silver 3D eyes

I invert the hook in the vise for this pattern.  Lay a light thread base and tie in a single strand mono weed guard.  It helps to mash the mono flat with pliers on the end to be tied in.  This keeps it from rolling.

Next, add a sparse clump of gray bucktail on top of the mono.  The length will be just past the hook.

Tie in the white pearl Sparkle Hair on top of the bucktail and trim to just longer than the bucktail tips.

Tie in rainbow pearl Sparkle Hair, leaving a hook length (minimum) of flash extending out over the eye of the hook.  I tie in excess and trim to length when the collar is formed.  Trim the tail length to just longer than the white pearl Sparkle Hair.

Tie in a clump of fuchsia Laser Dub to each side of the hook.  You can match the body color with the cheeks, or go hot, I went hot spot on this version.

Fold the excess flash from the front of the hook back over the Laser Dub and tie it down.  Trim to about the length of the hook.

Tie in silver metallic Estaz and make a few wraps to cover the material clump, then whip finish and trim your thread.  Try not to trap Estaz into the hook eye, it's easy to do and a cautery or wood burning tool is a great way to clear the eye before moving on.

Slide the 20mm shank over the hook eye and clamp it in the vise.  Secure the shank closed with thread.  I like to cover a good ways back over the open loop end to restrict the worm hook from moving too much which could lead to fouling.  The ability of the two parts of this fly to articulate and move is actually not that important to me.  The purpose behind articulating it is to utilize the snag-free nature of the EWG worm hook and still reproduce the profile and design of the traditional Murdich Minnow.

Tie in more silver metallic Estaz to the shank and tightly wrap the front of the body with touching wraps of Estaz.  Tie it off at the eye, whip finish, and cut the thread.

Now you can add some color, if desired.  For this pattern, I added some purple to the black and some light black barring/spotting on the purple.

Slide your Fish Mask on to test the fit, then I use a healthy dose of gel superglue on the bottom of the shank to help hold the Mask in place.  Build a thread dam in front of the Mask, glue on the 6mm eyes, and you're done!  These are my top three colors in the Murdich Minnow, so my test/trial patterns for the weedless version are in those colors.  Enjoy!