Blue gill bugs

[shipahoy41]

Those will work nicely. The rubber legs do not wear well. To fragile.

[skiptomylu]

I have some styrofoam popper bodies already glued to hooks, just need painted and feathers and legs. Wasn't as into doing my own as I thought. If you're interested let me know, I wouldn't want much. Those bugs will work. I like the brighter colors so I can see it move when they hit it underwater. Let us know how they do.

Skeet there is a bit more time put into a popper huh? I know that I like doing them, but not a fast thing to do.

Skip

[Fatman]

Those should catch them!!!!!!!! Gotta agree the rubber legs are gonna get tore up but they work great. Here's the site for the foam body cutters

Mayfly Body Foam Cutters

Fatman

[skeetbum]

Those look great and I'm sure the big gills will think so too. I got some different colored foam sheets from Hobby Lobby. You can cut bug bodies out of them, tie them to a hook and add the legs. One company even makes cutters, similar to small cookie cutters, to cut out different bug bodies. I know Skip has some.

It's best if you have an idea of what shape and size you want when you go looking at the foam cutters. Some of those prices will hurt your feelings. But they do a great job and save lots of time.

[skiptomylu]

You can also buy the pre-made hard white foam popper bodies and glue in the hook with epoxy and then paint and tie. That is what I have used for poppers, but you can do some with soft foam. Some use the popper hooks, but I think maybe I like both them and a regular straight shank hook.

Here are some like I have, not sure same brand...
Bob Marriott's Fly Fishing Store - Detail1 - 0006091200 - Hard Foam Popper Bodies - Fly Tying Materials - Bob Marriott's Fly Fishing Store

Some more, but they also have some like this that are soft...
Bob Marriott's Fly Fishing Store - Detail1 - 0007077270 - Perfect Poppers Hard Foam Blanks - Fly Tying Materials - Bob Marriott's Fly Fishing Store

Skip

[skeetbum]

The PPR is what I have, about dime sized face.

[bxn]

another good idea for leg material is simple spinner bait skirts you can find at walmart or dickssporting goods.i nailed gills good on some flys with such material for legs this summer.the material may be slightly more durable than the silly legs stuff.haven't used any of my ties yet i made with the silly legs stuff.

[AgriHawg]

Those look really good.

[dvuks]

Tied these up for out KY Lake trip next week. Do you guys think they'll work?

We got back yesterday, the bugs worked pretty good. I started using them with wax worms and then by themselves and caught alot of gills, the smallmouth liked them too. Best ones were the orange witch I only made one of, the chartreuse and the black and yellow. I have to make them a little stronger next time the bodies kept turning on the hook. Can't wait till next May. I put a small splitshot about 18" above the bug and kept it moving sometimes steadily and other times stop and go, it made a difference on some days. Also caught a few crappie with them at the dock.

Dennis

[NorthShoreTiger]

If I may... Some of the legs might be a bit long. If you miss too many hookups, consider trimming them down a bit. I had the problem.

I use the skirts that fall off of my spinner baits all the time. The rubber bands that hold em on these days just dont last. The Louisiana off topic forum has a few jigs that I tied with leftover skirts. I tie lots of poppers using skirts too. Look up a pattern called "hot lips" for a fun and aerodynamic popper variation. Here is a saltwater variant: Hot Lips Fly - Fly Angler's OnLine "Fly Fishing the Salt - 25" The craft foam at Hobby Lobby is perfect for these flies and can make a great pencil popper when layered.