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In this article we will look in detail at how to attach a balancer to a winter fishing rod correctly. To do this, it is necessary to solve two problems: not to worsen the game and not to create a weak link as a whole. This is probably the most subtle and controversial issue in fishing with balance beams. But in fact, the solution is on the surface. You just need to know some features and nuances.
Fastening to equipment
To properly secure the balancer to the fishing line, you need to understand the importance of wiring quality. Game is a decisive factor in catchability. Improper fastening can significantly worsen this indicator.
Correct position
You need to attach the balancer to the fishing line so that it hangs strictly horizontally in the water. This can also be affected by the placement of decorations on hooks. It is acceptable if the nose looks up at a slight angle. To do this, when tying blindly, the knot must pass through the center of the bait ring, and not be located at its base or on the side - in this case, the correct droop will be disrupted. A sliding fastening through a loop, ring or clasp eliminates this problem. How the balancer should hang on the fishing line is sometimes indicated on the packaging (on branded products). If, when tied correctly, the balancer hangs incorrectly, then this is already a jamb of the bait itself. This can be corrected by winding copper wire around the front or back hooks, as well as by manipulating the decorations on them (taking into account the differences in their weight in wet and dry states). High-quality branded products do not have such flaws.
Binding Requirements
To properly attach the balancer to the fishing line, you need to take into account a number of nuances. The performance of the bait depends on their implementation.
- Knots should not weaken the equipment (captain obvious).
- Attaching the balancer to the fishing line does not impair the game.
- The entire binding ensures the correct position with free hanging and movement during the retrieve.
- In general, you need to put the right one.
How to tie a balancer correctly
There are several ways to tie a balance beam for ice fishing that meet the above requirements.
Straight to the line
This is probably the most common way. It is best to tie the balancer to the fishing line with knots or an improved clinch. A regular clinch is also acceptable for use on small baits and catching small fish. But it is better not to use it on gear for large fish, since it can “move” under load.
Clinch knot
Palomar assembly diagram
Disadvantages of direct binding:
- Possibility of rubbing the knot against the bow of the bait during intense biting or fishing.
- There is no possibility of a quick change, you need to bandage it.
The performance of light lures can be impaired when using thick or stiff fishing line. To avoid this, the balancer can be equipped with a small winding ring, and tied to it.
Through a blind loop
At the end of the main line, after passing it through the bait ring, a blind loop is made. In this case, the bait hangs freely in the loop, and the game improves. That is why this method is the most correct. Some fishermen make such a loop with a figure eight knot or a regular knot. But this reduces strength. To properly tie a balance beam using this method, you need to use a rapala knot. This method also does not have the ability to quickly change bait. This method of tying is used when constantly fishing with one bait. This knot is quite complex. But you need to learn how to knit it - the advantages are obvious.
Rapala node diagram
With carabiner (clasp)
If frequent changes of bait are required, then fasteners (carabiners) can be used in installation. In the fishing community, disputes over the use of carbines do not subside. Some of the community argues that the presence of the clasp degrades the game. This probably makes sense if you use a huge heavy fastener on a light bait. On heavy baits, this effect will tend to zero due to the difference in mass. The obvious disadvantage is that if you play aggressively or fall quickly into the hole, the hooks can get caught in the carabiner. To avoid this, you need to attach the balancer to a special fly fastener. It is very small, short and light.
Using the swivel
A separate question is whether to use a swivel in the rig. Some anglers claim that without it, the line becomes very twisted. Perhaps this is still relevant when using a spinning reel and winding it frequently. Experience and practice provide a clear answer to this question.
A swivel is not needed in the balancing equipment. When playing, the bait twists the line a little (after swinging). But when it calms down and returns to its original position, the bait slowly unwinds it back, rotating at the end of the pause. Often bites follow precisely at this moment. Thus, easy twisting is not a disadvantage, but an advantage.
Do I need a leash on the balancer?
This is another topic that haunts winter spinners. It is clear that a heavy metal leader makes the game worse, especially for small and light lures. In winter, the water is cleaner, so such a leash will be noticeable to the fish. Experienced fishermen know that in winter the number of pike bites on a rig without a leash is an order of magnitude higher. At the same time, you don’t want to leave an expensive (or even worse, your favorite and catchy) bait in the pike’s mouth.
The general system for using leashes in winter is as follows:
- A leash is not used for catching pike perch and pike perch.
- It can also be neglected when fishing for pike, especially in the dead of winter, if it is known for certain from other anglers that the predator does not swallow deeply in this particular body of water.
- When specifically fishing for pike, as well as in reservoirs where its grip is very likely, it is better to use a leash.
The winter leash for the balancer should be thin and soft. Therefore, hard steel summer options are not suitable. It is recommended to use the following options:
- Thin tungsten leash from the store. In this case, the fittings hanging on it are removed (carefully bitten off with wire cutters). At the top of the main line it can be tied with a clinch, palomar, rapala knot or loop in a loop. Below - through a winding ring or a small carabiner.
- Fluorocarbon twist (2-3 strands of 0.2-0.3 each).
- Special leader material, for example, surflon.
Some fishermen advise using braided line as a leash, but in vain. Braided line can be cut by pike just as quickly and easily as monofilament. Always carefully approach the equipment of the balancing gear; all components must be neat and durable. Don’t forget, the main thing is the correct action of the bait.
Fishing in summer using a balance beam. At the height of summer, many lakes and river bays turn into real jungles. Everywhere you look there are water lilies, pondweed, elodea and other aquatic grass. In such conditions, it is impossible to fish with a spinning rod, unless the angler is ready to say goodbye to his best lures.
The plants grow so much that even vaunted non-snagging devices like gliders cannot get through these thickets. That is why some lovers of predator hunting prefer fishing from a boat in a plumb position on a balance beam. What is vertical flashing in the warm season?
☸ Tackle for summer fishing with a balance beam
Rod for such fishing it must be durable, and most importantly light and comfortable. It is advisable to build quickly. Its length depends on how shy the predatory fish in the selected body of water is. If she is not afraid of watercraft, then a spinning rod 3 meters long will do, otherwise you will have to use a 6-meter Bolognese. It’s better to take a telescopic fishing rod, so that if it gets caught under the boat, you don’t have to hold it by the very tip, but simply fold your knees and unhook the bait.
Reel You can install any spinning machine with a small spool. A meat grinder is needed only for landing fish (such fishing does not involve long casts), so the only requirements for it are easy movement and maximum balance with the rod.
As the main fishing line it is better to use a braided cord with a diameter of 0.1 to 0.14 mm (depending on the size of fish you plan to catch). This is an ideal option for fishing for perches and small pikes in thick grass, from which the prey has to be lifted very quickly to avoid snags. In order not to frighten the predator with the braid, a leash made of special material must be installed at the end. For example, Pro Leader.
The tackle is completed nod, although you can do without such an element. The nod makes the balancer play more natural and attractive. The best option is a coil spring.
☸ Effective baits
For vertical fishing from a boat in the summer, narrow-bodied balancers up to 5 cm long are most often used. It is difficult to fish with larger baits among vegetation. The problem is their wide game, which leads to frequent snags. In addition, mostly small predators are caught, which can simply ignore a large bait.
The working color is selected during the fishing process, so the arsenal should consist of at least three basic colors:
- silver – gray lures with a darkened back;
- gold – balancers with golden sides;
- red head - white body and red head.
Some spinners, both supporters of classic spinning fishing and fans of vertical trolling, mistakenly believe that the color of the bait does not particularly affect the result. In fact, this is not so, because you have to fish mainly at shallow depths and in clean, clear water, and the main predators of our latitudes - pike and perch - rely primarily on their eyesight.
You can see for yourself that a lot depends on color. To do this, you just need to try two completely different options: discreet natural colors and something from the bright “avant-garde”. As a rule, it only bites on one of them. To add attractiveness to the balancer, you can put multi-colored cambrics on its tee or tie a bunch of red wool. After this modification, the fish sits securely on the bottom hook.
☸ Selecting a watercraft
To fish on a plumb line, you don’t need a powerful boat or a large boat with a motor, since you usually don’t have to swim long distances. The most suitable vessel would be a two-seater, which can be pumped up on the shore, launched into the water and quietly approached to a promising location. Why double? It is more convenient to fish with a balance beam in the summer together with a partner: one fishes, and the second sits on the oars and takes the fish into the landing net. By the way, about the oars. Instead, experienced fishermen advise arming yourself with small paddles, which are much more convenient to maneuver without making noise.
☸ Fishing tactics
Throughout the summer and in the first half of autumn, predators announce their presence with loud splashes in the grass. This is how they hunt for food fish. Having heard the characteristic splashes, you must very carefully approach the place where they were coming from, wait a couple of minutes and carefully lower the balancer into the water, or rather into a clean window in the middle of vegetation. You need to approach from such a direction that the shadow of the boat and the people sitting in it does not fall on the treasured window. An anchor, of course, is out of the question.
First, the bait sinks to the bottom, then rises 10 cm, and you can make the first throw with the rod. Then a 3-second pause and a second jerk. After every 5 tosses, it is recommended to raise the balancer by 30 centimeters, gradually catching the entire vertical. If the fish does not react, you should try another bait or change the fishing location.
A bite during a vertical lure is detected by a nod, and in most cases it is clearly transmitted along the rod. The hook should be short and sharp. It is important to hold the fish, cope with the first powerful jerks and quickly bring it to the surface, otherwise a snag cannot be avoided.
- Decent catches are brought by fishing from a boat on a balancer in the morning and evening hours. It is at this time of day that the highest activity of the predator is observed, which is manifested by a large number of splashes on the water.
- If neither the toothy beauty nor the striped robber give themselves away in any way, then you should look for them first next to the grass, and then in its very thick.
- In winter, the lure's catch depends on how many holes it drills. Lazy people don't catch a lot of fish. In summer it’s the same thing - the more “windows” the angler catches, the better the fishing result.
Fishing on a balance beam in summer video
What is a balancer and how is it different?
The balancer came to us from Scandinavia and occupies the positions that were previously occupied by vertical spoons. They appeared in the arsenal of fishermen relatively recently, in the seventies of the last century. Our winter fishing enthusiasts paid attention to this Finnish bait when the fish did not want to take a spinner and jig in winter. There is an opinion that the first balancers were made from oblong jigs, which were equipped with hooks on both sides, and a hole was drilled near the middle and tied to the main fishing line. When lifted slightly, it oscillated, which resembled the movements of a fish and aroused the perch’s appetite for attack.
Successful fishing with a balancer attracted interest from manufacturers, and jig models made of strips of copper and brass were replaced by cute models in the form of fish, which are present in every fishing store.
The balancer is a small artificial fish that has single hooks soldered into its head and tail. At the bottom of the bait there is usually a ring for an additional tee, and on top there is another ring, through which the bait is tied to the main fishing line with a fishing knot or using a carabiner. Manufacturers produce balancers of various colors and patterns, which should be used depending on the fish that the angler intends to catch and the fishing conditions. The most popular sizes of balancer are from number 2 to number 9. The bait can be supplemented with flies or beads of bright colors that attract predators.
The balancer is the same vertical spoon, but only with a horizontal suspension. The balancer consists of a lead body and a plastic stabilizer. Moreover, the stabilizer may not necessarily be plastic, but also have wool or synthetic threads. The balancer suspension is located approximately at the center of gravity of the bait. When we lift the bait up, due to the design of the body and tail blade, the balancer begins to move to the left and then to the right.
A stabilizer is located in the tail part of the balancer. A correctly adjusted bait, suspended on a fishing line, is slightly raised by the head, and the smaller the balancer model, the greater the angle of inclination and vice versa. When the balancer is lowered into the hole, the bait takes on an almost horizontal position. A correctly made balance beam goes to the side as far as possible and turns back. The greater the amplitude of its movements, the higher quality the balancer is considered, and the more catchy the bait. After all, then she is able to fish a large area and attract the attention of a passive striped fish. When the balancer is lowered into the hole, it reaches its lowest point of the trajectory, and when the fishing rod swings, the bait goes to the side and, thanks to its properties, moves until the balancer takes up all the slack in the fishing line. After that, it turns around, performing a figure-eight-like figure, and moves in the opposite direction, like a pendulum on a clock moves.
Fishing stores amaze with the variety of balancers they produce. But we can distinguish the following several main varieties. These are silicone balancers, which began to go on sale relatively recently, as well as metal balancers with plastic wings or fur tassels instead of wings in the tail section.
The balancers differ in their proportions and the shape of the bait. In metal balancers with an enlarged head when swinging the fishing rod, the shape of its tail allows for maximum deflection in the direction of the bait's head. After tension and resistance of the fishing line, the balance of the bait is disturbed, and due to the enlarged head part, it suddenly somersaults, and the bait begins to move towards the original direction head first, and the tail plumage aligns the balancer horizontally.
Balancers with a narrow nose work in a similar scenario, but instead of somersault they perform a smooth turn in a circle.
Silicone balancers attract predators when played like a jig. Here you should carry out a stepwise and slow rise of the bait upward, and even if the bite is weak, play with it like a jig. At the beginning of fishing on each hole, you should lower the balancer to the bottom a couple of times, make a few smooth swings to muddy the water, dropping it down from a short distance of 10-20 cm. Raise the bait more sharply than with a metal balancer.
Winter fishing with lures on a balancer
Flashing on a balancer differs in that the pause value is selected empirically for each swing value. If you make a high swing, the pause length is the same; if you make a short swing, the pause size is different; if you make a sharp swing - the pause value is the third, a smoother one - the pause value is the fourth. On this balancer (Kuusamo), I deliberately bit off the front hook on the muzzle, because when playing, very often the front hook clings to the lower edge of the hole, which is very inconvenient. This is the weak link of the balancer.
Basically, on the balancer, perch and pike perch are caught on the lower tee, the pike grabs it across the whole. It occurs mainly either on the rear single track or on the lower tee - i.e. the most effective hook in the balancer is the lower tee. The most interesting thing is that even if the balancer is very large, all the bites still occur on the small three-point. Those. the perch tries to pinch off the edge of this bait.
You can lure in the water column, you can lure from the bottom, you can lure while touching the bottom. So, this balancer needs nine counts - on the ninth count it stops completely. The pause is determined by the moment when the balance stops.
As soon as the balancer has stopped, the next swing should be made. An underexposed pause on the balancer causes the line to spin.
“Tease” without pause. This method is very good for teasing perch and pike perch. But you can’t do this for a long time. After 5-6 strokes, you need to pause so that the line unwinds. As a rule, as soon as we pause, a bite immediately follows after teasing. It is very useful to diversify the movements in this way.
We make a few swings and, during a pause, swing the balancer. All this needs to be checked at home in advance to determine the length of the pause. While the balancer is in motion, it is attractive to fish.
Flashing with the balancer touching the bottom
The principle is this: at the moment when the balancer goes back and forth, it should scratch the bottom with a tee and lift the dirt from the bottom. This is a very effective way of flashing with a balancer.
The balancer is installed almost at the bottom, rises slightly, a swing is made and the balancer passes along the bottom, touching it. The next stroke is touching the bottom.
In this case of flashing, the pause is made a little shorter. Due to the fact that the tee touches the bottom, the balancer stops much faster. Therefore, the pause can be made shorter.
Practical history of acquaintance with balancing
I met the balancer about five years ago, during a group winter fishing trip. Previously, I didn’t have to fish in the winter, so for the trip I bought several sets of jigs of different sizes and a couple of my favorite spinners. The set is certainly small, but for the first time I thought that it was not worth collecting everything in a row, it was better to decide on the spot.
The place for fishing was chosen on the small river “In” flowing into the Amur. It was the end of November, according to the stories of experienced fishermen there was good pike fishing there, which is why it caught fire. We arrived at the river when the sun was just beginning its morning run, and the morning frost was quite biting. Having agreed, they decided on places within sight of each other, began to look for suitable places and drill holes. Drilling holes significantly raised my body temperature, and the frost was not felt at all; the awakened fishing adrenaline significantly lifted my mood.
On the very first prepared hole, I began to test my new gear, starting with spinners, since I thought the jig for pike was of little interest. On the first hole, as well as on the next three holes I drilled, the result turned out to be zero; I began to use jigs, but it was all in vain. Until I thought of attaching a tail made from part of a crow feather to one of the large jigs. The result was something similar to the play of a small fish, which, moreover, when the rod oscillated, became similar to the natural behavior of a fry.
With this device, having caught several squinting, a hundred grams each, I realized that a more substantial bait was needed. But I didn’t know what form it was, so I decided to look at the fishermen sitting down the river, not from our group. As they say, curiosity is not a vice, and it allowed me to find out what a balancer is.
The fisherman sitting below, near the hole, had about a dozen decent pikes, which aroused great surprise and envy in me. Vladimir was the name of the fisherman, although he was reluctant to show the balancers he had in his arsenal and which one he used best today. They were shaped like flattened minnows, with hooks soldered into both ends, and some also had a tee in the center of the abdomen. I returned back in a slightly depressed mood, while at the same time thinking about what to do, I walked around our grief-stricken fishermen. Their result was no better than mine, since they were the same specialists in winter fishing as I was. Having learned from me the news about the miracle bait, which catches a fairly decent pike, my friends rushed to Vladimir in a noisy crowd in order to verify the truth of what they had heard. I immediately imagined his reaction to such an invasion, and what gratitude he would express to me about himself.
The high spirits encouraged me and my design capabilities a little. Taking out of his backpack a small suitcase, taken just in case, with various fishing accessories for summer fishing, he began, mentally sorting through them, to invent something similar to Vladimir’s baits.
As a result of my about an hour's work, I got an excellent bait for the given conditions. I made it from two large jigs, a piece of metal tube from an antenna, three small pellets, a tee, a crow feather and soft metal wire. I placed pellets in a tube about 6 centimeters long and clamped it on both sides with pliers, and flattened the ends so that jigs could be attached to them. I carefully rewound this entire structure with wire, making two loops for the leash in the center and a tee at the bottom. To give my invention a more decent appearance, I melted a plastic bottle in a fire and, using wood chips, covered the structure with plastic, trying to give it the appearance of a fish as much as possible. When finished, I tied a small piece of red wool thread to one hook and a piece of feather to the second.
With such a super-fashionable balancer, he immediately headed to his holes. The first bite was only at the third hole, when my confidence in success had already dropped to complete despair. It happened so unexpectedly that I almost dropped the fishing rod, the pike took, as it turned out later, 1.9 kg. While I was getting out from under the ice, the adrenaline, after such a long disappointment, went off scale, so that you could feel your heart beating. Now I had something to be proud of in front of my fishermen; my cheerful mood and hope for a larger catch immediately returned.
But, unfortunately, it was already lunch time for us, but for the fish it was the exact opposite. Having stood around the hole for another half hour to no avail, he went to his men, who had already settled down near the fire for the mass meal. My success and the method of making the bait aroused admiration, I already looked like an ace among them, and after drinking a small amount of intoxicating drink, I began to give out free, practical advice.
What I took internally not only increased my confidence in my abilities, but also added a feeling of complete satisfaction; it made no difference whether I would catch more fish or not. We had fun around the fire until four in the afternoon, after which some, hoping for a catch, began to go to their places, and a little later I went to my holes. Before six o'clock in the evening I managed to catch eight more approximately the same predators, which later played a certain role in my attitude towards winter fishing. By the end of winter, I had accumulated a whole set of various homemade balancers, made with a more professional approach, the play of which I tested directly at home in the bathroom.
In conclusion, I would like to say that the use of balancers for catching predators is currently one of the best ways of winter fishing. This bait is usually used by a more respectable predator, and the end result is always more effective than when using spinners and jigs.