SANTEC - BALANCER SIZE S/L 3 PCS STAINLESS STEEL FISHING ACCESSORIES

Santec Balancer Size S/L 3 Pcs Stainless Steel

A balancer is the small stainless steel frame that keeps a bottom rig hanging the way it was designed to hang. It sits between the main line and the hook trace and holds the trace out and away from the vertical part of the rig, so the baited snood cannot wrap around the main line, the sinker or the leader on the drop. On a long cast or in current an unsupported dropper folds back on itself and lands as a tangle; a balancer keeps the arm rigid, the bait clear and the rig fishing from the moment it touches down. Supplied in two sizes, #S and #L, three pieces per pack.

Key Features

• Stainless steel construction for salt and brackish water use
• Holds the hook trace away from the main line to prevent tangles
• Two sizes: #S for light traces and small baits, #L for heavier rigs
• Three pieces per pack — enough to build a full multi-dropper rig

How To Rig It

• Single dropper above a sinker — Main line to the balancer, sinker below it, hook trace to the arm. The bait then works out to the side, above the lead, instead of lying on the bottom beside it.
• Two- or three-hook paternoster — Space balancers up the rig body at intervals longer than the traces themselves. If two traces can reach each other, they will tangle; spacing is the whole trick.
• Trace length rule — Keep each trace shorter than the gap to the next balancer, and shorter again when casting hard or fishing fast water. Longer traces give more bait movement but tangle more.
• Choosing the size — #S with light traces, small hooks and small baits on estuary, pond and light shore rigs. #L with heavier traces, bigger baits and heavier leads, where a small arm would bend under load or fold on the cast.

Bottom Fishing By Region

• Southeast Asia — Jetty, breakwater and mangrove-channel bottom rigs for barramundi (siakap), mangrove jack, grouper, snapper and catfish (ikan duri), where drifting weed and tidal flow make tangles constant.
• North America — Pier, surf and party-boat bottom rigs for sea bass, porgy, flounder and whiting, and in fresh water on multi-hook catfish rigs.
• Japan & East Asia — Dou-tsuki (胴突き仕掛け) dropper rigs for kasago, mebaru and ainame from breakwater and boat, and nage-zuri (投げ釣り) beach rigs for kisu where a folded trace ruins the cast.
• Australia, Middle East & Europe — Beach and rock paternoster rigs for whiting, bream and tailor; Gulf shore rigs for emperor and grouper; European boat and wreck rigs for cod, pollack and dab.

Specifications

Available sizes: #S and #L.

Recommended Pairing

• #S: light shore, estuary and pond bottom outfits, 8–20 lb main line with 10–20 lb traces
• #L: medium to heavy surf, jetty and boat outfits, 30–60 lb braid with 40–80 lb traces
• Combine with a crane or oyako swivel at the top of the rig to kill line twist