Thanks for the responses,
My last catch on an 8 weight was a 2.5 largemouth but the bream run up to a pound and a half in some cases here. We just bought the Betts poppers at the local Bass Pro and a 3 popper assortment by Cortland at Dick's Sporting Goods. I've made poppers in the distant past and would like to tie my own and get into the subsurface offerings too. Some of those flies and bugs can run as much as the crankbaits we buy and it must be cheaper to make your own. I plan to get a starter kit soon but would really like to make sizes and patterns that produce as opposed to me looking like an idiot at the back of the boat. As for saltwater, I know we get some huge Reds and Specks and a local guy took a 40 pound striper about two weeks back on a fly. I'd like some of that action.