As far as the tippet  yes and maybe.   Is the seaguar tippet material or just line.   You can  use regular line for tippet, but often tippet line is made to better tolerances more consistent breaking lb. and it is more supple.   Also when you compare the same diameter of fluorocarbon line with fluorocarbon tippet, the tippet material is stronger. That means you can use a thinner tippet of the same strength and get a more supple tippet that will give a more natural drift.  Flouro vs mono is another discussion......
 
Mending is what is needed to get the belly of the line behind the fly so the line is not pulling the fly and the fly is naturally drifting the same speed of the water.   The current on top is faster than on bottom and if the floating line is in front of the fly is will drag the fly across the bottom faster than the current.  Sometimes these fish are tuned in and that fast than the current fly will turn them away from it
http://midcurrent.com/techniques/a-mending-primer/
 
The indicator is for strikes and to sometimes hold the fly at a consistent depth.   I really only use them in slower pools for steel
 
Took me MANY  MANY trips to start to be comfortable with my fly pole and several ended in frustration.   I still have alot to learn and I stress ALOT.   I really enjoy tying my own flies and it is quite satisfying to catch something on a fly you created.   That said If you are only making one trip up to the river a year I  would still bring your spin rod and split time.  It takes time to learn , but also when the frustration creeps in you can fish with the spin rod for a while.   Confidence in your presentation goes a long way,  as the exact same fly presented a little differently  could be the difference . 
 
 
 
 

Great info from these guys.
Should save you at least a year or two on the learning curve.
 
Clint rarely does anybody that is really fishing have overwhelming success with salmon.
You go hoping for a couple bites and naything more is a bonus.
A shut out is another day in the karma bank.

First I have to say it was very difficult to log on the site. It won't allow my phone in and gave my lap top a fit so I'm hoping for the best.. Maybe why db is MIA ?
 
Clint pretty much nailed it as did 2 bob..
My rule of thumb on salmon was 1 in 10 you might find a player.. And thats when they are moving good and the Mojo is working.. I have seen Jacks mojo :) 
If they are holding in sucker pools, 1 in a million.. well everyone hopes to win the lotto right ?  lol
 
But we are determined fishermen in presuit of big game, at least I like catching 1..
Here are my ploys:
Find active new fish that are pushing out holding fish..watch fish move and how they react.. don't stand in a spot where fish just go by or hold in ones,twos .. find where they will interact with other fish..
 
The Gear:
Read ALL the REGULATIONS for the Salmon River or waters you wish to fish..( can someone please post a link) .. It seems basic but areas and regs are different ,such as fly zones and DSR.. Know the rules going in..
You seemed to do well on selection.. I'm not sure about what reel you have but you will know quickly if it's sufficent..
Leader/ tippet:
I'm with you on the pre made tapered leader.. I used tomake my own and struggled through a few today but pre-made , 9' 15 lb sweet tapered is good for me at 3-$12.00.. Always carry tippet material.. This time of year , 15# & 10# is all good.. Need not be fluro..
Forget the swivel except for what Clint said if your tapered leader gets chewed down.. Swivel will come later when water temps drop and trout are hugging bottom..
For salmon I like to be above or as a wise man said "swing it across their face" .. I dont like to be bottom bouncing now and as result very little tackle is lost..
The thing bobber:
it's used for a slow deep presentation.. Yea a bobber..lol Not very effective on salmon but works well when water is very cold and snag infested areas.. If you wish to try it out I will say it will kink your leader when you take it off..
Basically find an inside seam 4-5' deep along some deeper water .. Pinch a tiny loop in your leader and thread it through the hole on the thing then open the loop big to slip over it..Set it for 1 to 1 & 1/2 times depth, I'd stick with 1..  and cast 2 oclock up stream. when it hits the water either throw line behingd or raise rod high and gather (strip & hold) line as it comes towards you.. As it is 12:00 then give an upstream mend (upstream roll of rod and shoot line) slightly behind to keep bobber flowing at current speed..
Enough bobber talk..
 
Flies:
thats way open to interpatation:
I always liked big streamer flies the fish could see.. Size #4-6
I have caught and seen clinics put on with size 8 estaz / egg (glo bug )flies from good folks here actually fishing.. Trout like a size 8-10 egg..
Good luck there as I have hundreds in my box and probably none of them will work..lol
I do hear tell some trout have hit the bank and not the stringer.. Kudos Jack :)
 
Good luck and have fun..
Peace & Tuna
 
 
 
 

picked up a brand new LL BEAN 9ft, 8 wt dirt cheap on ebay.  love it and that's all i've been using for the past 2 years for steelhead here in Erie.

dtrobe-  Just keep in mind that if you fish DSR you need a "line break" between your leader and tippet with either a swivel or a barrel knot.  See the DSR webpage for Rules & Regulations.

Today I learned Suffex floro blows.
Maybe not as bad as Vanish but close.
I lost 4 flies with curly cues at the end meaning the knot slipped.
One I was barely hung on the bottom and the fly was gone.
 
 
 

I attended a bass seminar a couple of years ago and the guest speaker, Hank Parker, said that Vanish was the worst line that Berkeley ever made, poor knot strength.

Thanks all for the advice.  The Seagar stuff I have is 14# leader.  I also went online to The Anglers Dream and bought a bunch of flies.  They were cheap compared to other websites I looked at.  I got a couple different egg ones, sucking leach, and wooly buggers of different colors and sizes 8-12.

As far as the Vainsh  I had fair luck with it.   I had a spool of 10lb given to me, spooled a spinning reel and used it for the middle section of my leaders .   It never  broke while fighting a fish but it broke when often when getting snagged especially at the knots.   I will be switching to Seaguar or maybe even  Just try a mono leader with Trilenr XT

Still liking Drennan the best. Pricey but ya get what ya pay for sometimes. Tried some others and threw them out after a few bad times.
 Not quite so fussy with Kings but  for Steel-Drennan.
 Maxima is still on my list for Kings.