The Murdich Minnow Series of Jigs were born out of frustration. (I'm sure you've been there every once in awhile, right? )
Imagine a day on the water with fish busting minnows throughout the morning. But after several hours, you still have nothing to show for your efforts. You cast into the spray of minnows, but your offering is ignored repeatedly. The fish are so keyed into the herded-up minnows that they ignore everything else.
Although the scenery was nice and the weather was gorgeous, it sure would have been nice to feel the tug of a bass. This happened to me several times while fishing on the North Branch Susquehanna River. After one unproductive outing, I decided to try and come up with a jig that would imitate the minnows that the fish were so excited about. I knew that the jig had to look like prey the fish were after, it had to sink, and it had to have a an attention getting profile. After a few hours of trial and tribulation, I came up with workable prototypes and couldn't wait to give them a try.
Next time out to the river, I had several Lite Brites, Brown, and Olive/Tan Jigs in my tackle bag. It didn't take long to realize that I'd hit a home run. I picked up multiple smallmouth bass, fallfish, and even a nice walleye just while blind-casting. I kept my eyes open for scattering minnows. When I saw gamefish busting minnows in the shallows, I'd cast the Murdich Minnow into the fray.
Success is so sweet!
The jigs aren't magic… but it does work very well when minnows are the main food source. Then, they seem to be magic!
There are dozens if not hundreds of baitfish imitations out there. One major problem I have seen in their design is that they are lacking the attention getting profile and if they do have this profile it usually required half a chicken to get the right amount of feathers to make it! As a fly tyer I am very fortunate today to have a vast amount of synthetic and natural materials to experiment with. Some people feel that flies made with all natural materials are superior to those made with synthetics and vice versa. In my experiences, I have found that a combination of both natural and synthetic materials creates baits with the best profile, silhouette, coloration, action, and castability. Finding out which natural materials blend readily with synthetics takes time and experimentation but adds to my fun of creating new jigs and flies. These jigs work not only on bass, but trout too!
The "LITE BRITE" Murdich Minnow
The Murdich Minnow aka Lite Brite Jig takes a sweet lake-run Brown for angler Jim Cooke.
Here are the advantages of fishing the Lite Brite Jig: The materials are transparent yet have a light cream translucent hue to them and I created a very large profile with the minimal amount of materials. The Lite Brite doesn't appear as bubbles or dark blobs, but shine and glisten in the sunlight as real minnows do. Also, because the materials are thin fibers, the minnows swim with the slightest of movements. They swim when laying on the bottom. No other ‘big box’ tackle store imitation bait can compare with the life-like movements of this jig pattern.
Due to customer demand, (Yes... my customers DEMANDED) some muted and subdued colors for this style of jig. I quote; "I love the action I get from the Lite Brite Murdich Minnow, but other places I fish have darker baitfish the bass hammer on. Can you make me some with brown?" (Submitted by Doug Boone, Juniper, Alababma)
SURE! Ask and ye shall receive!
The Brown Murdich Minnow
Mr. Dale Moen is an avid Bass angler from Northwest Pennsylvania. He fishes both Pymatuning Reservoir, Conneaut Lake, and the Lake Erie Basin extensively for bass. Also, in the fall, he stalks the Steelhead and Salmon in both Lakes Erie and Ontario tributaries. He needed a bait that would be multi-specie related: "Dave, here's what I need. Something Tan to mimic "flesh" when the Salmon, brown trout, and Steelhead are eating the decaying matter of post-spawned out Kings and Coho Salmon, but I need green on it too... to mimic the Shiners and Gobies in Lake Erie. Plus the bass go crazy for anything green and tan-like on Pymatuning & Conneaut Lakes. Can you come up with something? I need it 'flowing' like your Lite Brite Murdich Minnow but in greens, tans, or some darker colors. I know you can weave your magic, right?" - (Submitted by Dale Moen, Edinboro, PA)
So began the birth of:
The Olive and Tan Murdich Minnow
(and the rest is history...)
Mr. Moen's response after using the Olive/Tan Murdich Minnow: "Dave, these green and tan jigs are SUPERB!!! Every cast I'm getting hits with the bass. I cannot wait to use them this fall for Steel and Salmon. Your a master! The action is EXACTLY the same as your Lite Brite Murdich Minnow. I couldn't be happier with your tying!! You have a life-long customer now! Thank you so much!" - Dale
The Black & Brown Murdich Minnow
This pattern coloration was thought up by Lance Dunham of L.D. Guide Service: "Black and brown would sure catch some smallies. Hint, Hint. LOL!" No problem Lance. I think this style will be a winner for you!
The Dirty Water Black Murdich Minnow
This is a great jig to used during 'less than ideal' water conditions. Stained, high, muddy, or just plain old DEEP levels... this jig will show up in those challenging conditions. It's colorfast, won't fade, gives off a huge profile (think target) in the water so your fish can see this bait coming. For added "zing" ask me to add a rattle to give it some vibrations in the water.
NEW - Murdich Crawdad Jig!
The Murdich Crawdad. Fuzzy, Hairy, and deadly to Largemouth Bass.
A lot of Largemouth Bass anglers prefer and request specialty jigs with a bulky, heavier jigs to imitate crayfish (aka crawfish/crawdads). They specifically requested an addition of Trailers that look like crawfish arms and antennae. What the trailer does is to act and to look like a crawfish’s thicker pinchers and thorax. This silhouette is crawfish-like in appearance. Crawfish type jigs are cast out and allowed to settle to the bottom. Tighten the line just enough so it appears that the crawfish’s pinchers are angled upwards. Then inch the jig along the bottom in slow crawls. It’s subtle action whether sitting still on bottom, or swimming back on the retreive - just looks alive! An occasional short, fast spurt makes the jig appear like a crawfish that is getting away. Then watch those rabbit strip claws and rubber leg antennae make those bass go WILD!! The rabbit strips are buoyant, making it lift off the bottom, getting the attention of bronzeback foraging in the gravel or chunk rock All of these materials working together on this pattern produce a very nice pulsing action under water. This jig is lethal on bass in shallow cover and perfect for flipping or pitching around structure and docks.
Anglers in Virginia, Maryland, and North Carolina LOVE the Murdich Minnows & Crawdad for river smallmouth bass, tidal largemouth bass, and reservoir bass.
So give the Murdich Minnow & Murdich Crawdad Jigs a try. I'm sure you will have as much fun and success as Mr. Boone, Mr. Moen, or Lance Dunham using them. (Or as much fun as I had making them!)
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This 'old-school' lure is tied in the "Killer Style" and is an excellent clear water bait.$3.25
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Fish with a killer color combo for bass. Plus, you can show your support for Penn State!$2.50
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Just the jig you need for those cold-water lethargic, spooky bass and walleye.$3.25
