Fishing with a balance beam: pike and perch in winter, types of fishing

It is difficult to name the exact date of the appearance of balancers in the arsenal of fishermen, but it is known for certain that they began to enjoy popularity in the last 5–7 years.
Now winter fishing with a balance beam is no less common than fishing with jigs and this bait deserves detailed consideration. It is generally accepted that the best winter bait is the jig, and fans of ice fishing actively use it on fishing trips. Unlike open water fishing, when the choice of baits is much wider, fishing from a hole limits the angler’s options, but this does not mean that there is no worthy alternative to a jig. The balancer is rightfully such an alternative and fishing with this bait in winter is very effective.

What is a balancer and what are its advantages?

Balancers are used to catch predatory fish:

pike;
pike perch;
perch

With the advent of paid fish farms for trout breeding in our country, as well as densely stocked paid reservoirs, athletes and amateurs use balance beams for fishing in such conditions.

Balancers are the most catchy during winter fishing from ice, when the predator is active and moves across all horizons in search of food. A metal or plastic fish with bright plumage resembles live food and perch or pike perch attack it without hesitation.

Search fishing for predatory fish, when 4-6 holes are drilled, also involves the use of balancers, because with the help of active wiring it is possible to attract the attention of trophies.

As you know, carp in the autumn, before the onset of cold weather, does not disdain small fish, so catching a handsome yellow-bellied fish on a balance beam is not at all uncommon, especially in private paid ponds.

Externally, the bait resembles a small shiny fish and, as you know, for a predator this is the main component of the food program. The balancer is attached to a ring located in the upper part (fin) of the artificial fish and thanks to this it assumes a horizontal position in the water.

That is, when a predator sees the bait, it gets the impression that it is a wounded fish that no longer has the strength to move quickly in the water and hide from potential enemies. To stabilize the balancer when moving the rod, a plate made of metal or plastic is mounted in its rear part.

A tee with a ring is attached to the belly of the bait, ensuring free movement next to the bait. Two more single hooks are attached to the head and tail of the balancers, which guarantees that the predator will be caught both when attacking from behind and from the front.

Although externally similar, the balancers differ:

sizes;
color;
buoyancy;
number of hooks;
stabilizer material;
the material of the bait itself.

To manufacture the balancer body, use:

plastic;
light metal;
balsa

Depending on the material used for manufacturing, the physical properties of baits change, and they behave differently in water. The main task of the fisherman, using one or another wiring technique, is to animate the balancer so that it reminds a predator of a potential prey.

The material used to make the body is important for durability and strength, as well as for the buoyancy of the bait, which, as we remember, should be positioned horizontally in the water. Metal balancers are the strongest, but they weigh more and sink faster than plastic ones.

The issue of choosing the color of a balancer for fishing from a hole for perch or pike deserves special attention. Each fish has its own preferences in this regard, depending on the weather, the lighting, and its mood.

There are anglers who believe that color is not important at all, the main thing is to know how to play temptingly with a balancer in the water and this is enough to attract fish.

It’s difficult to say for sure whether they are right or wrong, but as experience shows, color still matters and you shouldn’t go fishing with only one or two baits, limiting your capabilities.

You definitely need to have balancers of a natural shade, reminiscent of a small fish; the following baits work well for perch:

with blue back;
with a white belly;
with a red tail;
salad shade.

By the way, perch is the most popular winter predator for reservoirs in the central part of the country, so at the beginning of fishing, baits aimed at this fish are tried.

The fisherman’s mistake is that he chooses a balancer of the shape and shade that the person, and not the fish, likes. Although manufacturers of bait and fishing equipment benefit from the fact that people are willing to spend money to fill their boxes with more and more jigs, balancers or spinners.

Another difference between artificial fish is the shape and material from which the tail is made.

At the back of the artificial fish are:

metal or plastic spatulas;
fur plumage;
silicone tail.

Balancers with plumage in the form of a plastic paddle are perhaps considered the most popular, although this does not mean that fish do not bite on other types. Only by varying the types of bait can the fisherman find the most successful model. The next fishing trip will take place under different conditions and in order to achieve success, you will have to experiment with baits again, choosing the most catchy one.

Fishing with a balance beam is classified as a search type of fishing, and is used for active fish. But thanks to “secret” wiring, fishermen manage to stir up the inactive predator and force it to attack the proposed target.

In addition, it is more convenient to remove fish from the balancers than, for example, from the same jig. In cold weather, you need to protect your hands from wind and water, and it is easier to work with gloves without bait.

Advantages and disadvantages of a balancer

Despite the fact that you can catch any fish using a balance beam, most often fishermen pay attention to perch. It must be said that with the right game, you can catch pike, pike perch, and many other river inhabitants. There are fishermen who say that they are unable to fish with a balance beam, although the reason for this is that the wrong tactics were chosen.

Fishermen who managed to cope with the gear noted that using the element was much more effective than using a spoon. Moreover, fishing with a balance beam in winter allows you to catch good specimens.

At the same time, the element also has some disadvantages, it lies in the slow pace. For many, this is an obstacle because it does not allow them to quickly remove their fish from the tee. This is often noticeable when the bite is good, but rather short.

Advantages of bait for winter fishing

When going to a pond in winter, a fisherman selects the optimal fishing gear and bait that can interest the fish. There are no completely universal baits, and in some conditions a jig will work better, and in others a balancer will work better.

It is unlikely that you will be able to catch a roach or bluegill with a metal fish that has a mouth smaller than the size of the tee on the bait. And bites from larger specimens of peaceful fish, which are still able to “eat” the offered fish, are very rare.

Therefore, the use of balancers when fishing in holes is justified in those reservoirs where predatory fish are present.
And they catch it according to the rules adopted for catching a predator. Among the advantages of balancers we highlight:

versatility (the bait is used against both active and passive predators);
Possibility of use both at great and shallow depths, the main thing is to find and stir up the prey;
diverse and accessible wiring techniques for beginners;
affordable gear, varied in both price and quality;
ease of installation and quick change of baits;
a large selection of baits, which helps to find the “key” to a predator on a given body of water under given conditions;
the possibility of making and using homemade products.

When faced with new gear, the fisherman has to master new fishing techniques, which are by no means always so accessible. When fishing in winter with balance beams, there is no such problem, and the learning process goes very quickly.

After the first bites and catches of perch or pike, it becomes clear that the bait works both near the bottom and in the upper layers of the water and it is a pleasure to work with it.

Even the fact that the cost of balancers is not much higher than the same jigs plays an important role. In addition, fishermen make catchable baits themselves, saving money and adding variety to the fishing process.

When going out on the ice, it is impossible to say which balancer will provoke an active bite, but through experimentation, changing baits and fishing techniques, anglers achieve results.

How to choose a balancer for winter fishing

Choosing the right balancer for winter fishing is 50% success and there are several criteria by which one or another bait is preferred. There is no difficulty here.

When choosing bait, consider:

the expected size of the trophy being hunted (small perch need one balancer, pike perch from 1 kg and above need another);
depth at the fishing point;
is there a current in the reservoir;
bait wiring height;
time of day when fishing takes place (day/night) and light level;
the gear used.

There is no point in catching a small predator with a large balancer, especially since such bait will simply scare it away. If there are both small perch and trophy pike in the reservoir, you have to vary the bait to choose the most suitable one.

But again, it is important to understand that with a small bait you will be able to catch a trophy pike, but the opposite is unlikely.

On the other hand, a large balancer fishes a large area under the hole, and this is important when catching low-active fish. Therefore, a reasonable compromise is needed and the size of the bait used is determined by the average size of the predator in the reservoir, as well as the area of the fished area.

The depth at the point where the hole is drilled and the presence of current also play a role if fishing is carried out on a river. The angler needs to understand how to properly fish with a balance beam so that the bait behaves naturally and moves in a horizontal plane at a given depth. Wiring in the bottom layer and at a depth of 4–5 meters or more requires the selection of heavy balancers weighing more than 6 grams. A heavy bait is also chosen when fishing in the current, because a light balancer will be carried away by the flow of water from the chosen place.

when fishing at a depth of 1 to 3 meters (and there is no current), balancers 2–5 cm long are used. This bait is intended for small fish, but biting trophies, especially during thaw periods, happens often;
for medium-sized fish, at a depth of up to 5 meters, balancers with a length of 5 to 8 cm are used. These are the favorite baits and depths for pike perch and perch;
To catch pike in deep water (including in the current), heavy baits up to 9 cm long are used.

The shape of the balancer is chosen depending on what kind of predator will be in the catch; “pot-bellied” artificial fish work better for perch, but narrow-bodied ones work better for pike perch.

Whatever they say, the price of baits also plays a role in their choice, especially considering that the fisherman has a lot of them in his box. Conventionally, balancers are divided into cheap ones, made in China, or home-grown craftsmen, and expensive ones, from popular global manufacturers.

Here, each angler has his own arguments when choosing (after all, not everyone has a budget sufficient to buy 2-3 dozen branded lures), but do not forget that it is better to buy one catchable balancer from Lucky John or Rapala than 3– 5 Chinese that won't do any good.

Chinese products do not differ in quality, their stabilizers quickly fall off (and they have to be glued), and the quality of the hooks leaves much to be desired. But the main thing is that in water such baits do not show the results that are expected from them.

For experienced fishermen, up to a dozen good quality artificial fish are enough to fish for the entire winter season.

Don’t forget to check the sharpness of the hooks and tees on the balancer and if they are dull, sharpen or change them.

Features of fishing with a pike balancer

Despite the fact that you can catch any fish with a balancer, depending on the specimen, the technique is slightly different, so this should be taken into account. So, you should fish for pike on a balance beam only during daylight hours. The game of the balancer is soft and unhurried. As for the rise, it should be as slow as possible, and the pauses should be short.

When hunting for a given type of fish, you should understand that you need to choose a large bait. It is best if it is a seven-centimeter element. If we talk about color, it is better to take products made for roach or perch, they are usually called that.

When choosing bait in the store, special attention should be paid to the size of the hooks. If the angler liked two balancers that are the same size, then he should choose the one with a larger tee.

As for the fishing itself, it begins with drilling holes.

Important! Regardless of what kind of fish a person is going to catch, the holes should be made in a checkerboard pattern.

The distance from one ice hole to another should be about six meters. True, if the fisherman knows the area well and knows where all kinds of snags or depressions are located (namely, that’s where the pike is hiding), then you can capture only one area and drill holes in one area.

If you are planning winter fishing with a balance beam, then it is better to take with you such elements as Nils Master, Rapala Jigging Rap, Karismax.

How to assemble fishing gear

It is naive to believe that the choice of a catchable balancer is a necessary and sufficient condition for always being with the fish; after all, you also need to assemble the tackle correctly.

Winter fishing is more difficult in terms of conditions and not only in terms of the convenience of the fisherman. In clear water, the potential trophy can be seen much better, and careful camouflage of the gear comes to the fore.

A fishing rod for fishing with a balancer is chosen up to 50 cm long with a comfortable handle and a sensitive nod. There are anglers who believe that a predator’s bite on an artificial fish can be easily determined even without a nod; after all, it is not a roach or a ram, which bites very gently. But in winter, the predator is not always active and the sluggish winter perch or zander does not swallow the bait whole, so it is impossible to miss the bite.

The nod is also needed to perform correct retrieving and precise hooking, so when fishing with a balance beam you cannot do without it. There are often cases when only by a slight trembling of the nod it becomes clear that the fish is on the hook and all that remains is to hook it.

The length and stiffness of the nod depend on the weight and size of the bait used, so it makes sense to take fishing rods with nods for both light and heavy balancers when fishing. If you are using a fishing rod with removable nods, then it is enough to take spare nods of varying degrees of hardness with you to the pond. They will not take up much space in a fisherman’s bag, but will help you choose the optimal combination of nod stiffness and weight/size of the bait used.

It is recommended to select the nod so that its angle of inclination with the tied balancer at rest is 50–60 degrees.

A winter fishing rod for fishing with a balancer is equipped with a reel:

resistant to low temperatures;
with easy rotation;
comfortable grip for palm and fingers;
protected from the adhesion of ice and snow.

The design of the reel should ensure quick release of the line when biting a trophy fish, when forced fishing is impossible for fear of the line breaking. The winter balancer is “sharpened” for catching small and medium-sized predators, but you also need to be prepared for the trophy to bite.

Fishermen use reels with a fast stroke and a lever that slows down the bleeding of the line.

The main line for fishing with artificial fish is monofilament, with a diameter of 0.14-0.16 mm. A thick line will scare away the fish, and a thinner line will break when hooked. If you are purposefully fishing with a balancer for trophy pike or pike perch and you need to force the fishing, use a fishing line with a diameter of up to 0.20 mm.

Using a thick fishing line worsens the “game” of the bait and it behaves unnaturally in the water, which is bad.

Using leashes when fishing with a balance beam in winter has a serious drawback - it unmasks the tackle in clear water, and this should be avoided. And it’s better to do without other “optional” elements of gear such as swivels or fasteners that make it easier for the fisherman to install the gear, this will only alert the predator and worsen the bite. The balancer is tied directly to the base and a tail of up to 5 mm is left so that the knot does not come undone when fishing.

How to fish in winter with a balance beam

Balancers that have a wide shape have a large radius of action. True, the expansion that exists in the tummy area of an artificial bait does not allow it to be completely swallowed. Some anglers resort to using “bladeless” elements. They are very similar to spinners in fishing tactics.

Another important point to pay attention to when going pike fishing is size. It is best to take a closer look at balancers measuring about 5 cm. If you are going to fish for large fish, you can safely take a product with a size of 7 cm. Particular attention should be paid to the sharpness of the hook. Speaking about coloring, it should be noted that it is better to choose one that is as close as possible to the color of the fry. Although there are anglers who manage to come home with trophies, catching fish on balance beams of poisonous flowers.

Winter fishing technique using balance beams

Fishing with balance beams for both beginners and experienced fishermen begins with collecting gear and choosing bait, but to achieve success in fishing, you need to use catchy fishing.

A small fish in cold water (which, as we remember, is imitated by a balance beam) does not stand still, but constantly moves, sometimes accelerating, sometimes slowing down. The bait behaves the same way if the fishing rod is in the hands of a skilled fisherman.

It is not difficult to learn effective wiring, and there is not so much choice. The movement of the bait in the water is controlled by the nod of the fishing rod and changes with hand movements. It has been noticed that in different bodies of water, the preferences of fish in terms of the weight and shape of the balancers and their behavior differ, so you will have to adapt and the result will not be long in coming. But what is common is that most often the predator’s bite occurs during a pause, when the artificial fish slows down and it is more convenient for the pike perch or perch to grab it.

How to fish with a balance beam

Even novice fishermen use a balancer for winter fishing. At the very beginning, the product will need to be lowered to the very bottom, and then the balancer will need to be raised slightly. All swings must be performed smoothly. After the element has been lifted, the fishing rod returns to its original position. After this, the bait is also returned to its place.

Then you need to do all the same movements, but only this time the fishing rod is moved in the other direction. That is, the movements should be similar to the “figure eight”, which is described in the water column. If you want to succeed, this is how the balancer should move. After playing in this way about 10-15 times, it will be necessary to shorten the fishing line by at least half a meter. This way it will be possible to fish other areas that are slightly higher.

Postings

Describing catching movements takes more time than performing them, but this is necessary in order to quickly master the technique.

When fishing in shallow areas:

The balancer is lowered into the water column to the very bottom, after which a slow rise begins. When the bait rises 30–35 cm from the bottom, pause for 3–5 seconds. The rise continues another 30–35 cm and then pause again, until the fish bites or the bait reaches the surface. Lowering the balancer into the water, the angler makes 2-3 strikes with the bait on the bottom, giving the fish an audible and visual signal. Hitting the bottom, the balancer raises a cloud of sand or silt, and the perch likes this and attracts its attention.
The balancer is lowered to the bottom and paused for 3–5 seconds. Next, the bait is raised by 10–15 cm and another pause. After the bait takes a horizontal position, with a wave of the fishing rod, it is tossed 15–20 cm at an angle of 60º and pause again. We wait until the line takes a vertical position and make a throw in the opposite direction, at the same angle. Due to the deviation of the direction of the nod, the bait moves in the water column not only upward, but also to the side, arousing the interest of a nearby predator.

The types of balancer deployments for fishing in deep areas differ in that the bait is not always lowered to the very bottom, although the near-bottom horizon is studied first. If there are no bites, the “fish” rises 30–50 cm and the wiring is repeated in the same sequence.

“Figure eight” wiring - the bait is placed on the bottom and its smooth rise begins to a height of 30 cm. Next, with a wave of the fishing rod, the balancer is raised by 20–30 cm, and the fishing rod is returned to its place. In this case, the bait first moves at an angle and upwards, and then returns to its original position. Perch bites most often occur at the moment the fishing rod freezes, when the balancer slowly lowers and also at an angle. The behavior of the bait resembles the movement of a wounded fish that wants to go to the surface, but does not have enough strength to do so. It is important that the position of the fisherman’s hand is stable and that the nod returns to the starting point. For convenience, anglers place their hand on their knee or fishing box. With this wiring, the balancer makes movements in the water similar to the number “8”, and this option is considered the most catchy for perch.
“Combing wiring” is recommended when fishing for perch and cannot be called strictly bottom fishing. The height is chosen depending on where the fish are located, but fishing begins by examining the bottom. Already from the name it is clear that with the help of such wiring the fisherman, as it were, “combs” the bottom layer of water and it is classified as a search one. The balancer is lowered to the bottom and the bottom is tapped using hand movements. Every 4–6 beats, pause for up to 3 seconds. If there is no bite, the balancer rises 15 cm and a pause of 3 seconds is made. While the bait is hanging, with the help of a nod, the angler swings the bait, increasing its attractiveness. After the end of the pause, make 4-6 “nods” with the rod and again pause with swinging. It is clear that such wiring checks the fish throughout the entire water column and if there is one nearby, a bite will definitely follow.
Simple fishing for winter perch - after the balancer is immersed and hits the bottom, the angler makes a sharp rise of the fishing rod by 25–30 cm and lowers the nod down. As a result, the bait falls freely to the bottom with a thud. Then – a pause of up to 5 seconds and again a sharp jerk. If after 5-7 lifts the fish does not bite, you need to change the type of wiring, or move to another hole.

Expert opinion

Alexander Popov

Expert fisherman

The main task of any wiring is to find the fish and attract its attention. Perch and small pike perch stay in schools in winter and, having caught one fish, with a high degree of probability you can expect a bite from its fellows.

If a predator bites from the bottom, then intensive fishing will help “lift” it higher and then the fishing pace will increase. It’s wrong to sit for hours near one hole if there are no bites, it’s just wasted time. That’s why they drill 5–7 holes at once, at a distance of 4–6 meters from each other, and fish, moving from one to another.

But constantly running from one hole to another is wrong if all the fishing options at different horizons have not been used, and changing baits helps solve the problem of attracting fish.

Having caught well in one of the areas, when the bite decreases, you need to move to another and let the hole “cool down”. Even having spotted an artificial fish, a pike perch or pike perch will not immediately become interested in it, and only with the help of suitable wiring it is possible to “force” them to bite.

At the beginning of the winter season, after the ice covers the reservoir, when catching a predator on a balance beam, small baits and slow retrieves are chosen, because the fish are inactive and are in no hurry to feed. But with the approach of spring, the wiring used should be more energetic and sharp, because a hungry fish becomes aggressive and loses caution, attacking everything that reminds it of food.

When fishing with silicone artificial fish, all movements with a fishing rod and nod should be sharper, this is due to the peculiarities of the behavior of the bait in cold water.

The frequency and speed of raising and lowering the bait are determined experimentally and there can be no hard and fast rules here. This is why fishing for artificial fish is good, because the fisherman, in order to attract the attention of the trophy, shows all his ingenuity and skills.

For beginners, fishing with balance beams in winter is both convenient and interesting, because the fish are of good size, and there are no problems with attaching bloodworms, maggots, or removing the trophy from the hook.

Such baits work throughout the entire season of closed water, and do not require any sophisticated gear or fishing equipment. In early winter, you need to look for predators throughout the entire reservoir, but closer to spring, when the fish are near their usual sites, you need to find them. If the reservoir is unfamiliar, holes drilled by other fishermen will suggest them, especially since the time of their drilling is not difficult to determine.

If there is no bite within 3-4 minutes, you need to change the wiring to a less sharp one.

Errors when fishing

For winter fishing with a balance beam to be successful, you need experience, but at first, of course, mistakes happen that affect the fishing result. It is important that the angler analyzes his actions and has an idea not only of how to assemble gear and fish with this bait, but also what not to do.

A few tips will help you avoid critical mistakes and quickly master fishing with a balance beam from ice:

Winter rigs are knitted on ultra-thin fishing lines, invisible in the water, with a coating that protects from low temperatures. But you shouldn’t use too thin a fishing line with a balancer, especially if you can catch a solid trophy, pike or pike perch weighing 2 kg or more. If there are trophy fish in the reservoir, the main fishing line for the balancer should be at least 0.16 mm in diameter, and preferably 0.18, or even 0.2. Even with very careful fishing for a trophy predator, working with ultra-thin fishing lines is problematic, especially considering that the bait itself is heavier than, for example, a jig.
You need to knit the balancer directly onto the main line, without any leashes. This is necessary so that the action of the bait when retrieving is natural, and it is as similar as possible to a real fish. There is a risk of losing the balance when biting a pike, but this predator is not caught often, but perch and pike perch bite better on a lineless rig.
When tying a rig, use self-tightening knots (clinch type), this way the bait won’t come off and it’s easier to catch trophy fish, because you have confidence in the reliability of the equipment. When tying the balancer, the tip of the fishing line is not cut too short and is melted with a lighter to increase reliability.
To ensure free movement of the bait in the water, a copper ring is soldered to the balancer and the main fishing line is tied to it. Among other things, this also protects the fishing line from chafing, because copper is a soft metal and even after long-term use hard burrs do not appear on it.
The bites of a predator on an artificial fish are powerful and most often unexpected, so you need to carefully monitor the nod and strike in time. A colored foam ball at the tip of the nod will help you see the most delicate bite without making the tackle rougher.

Fishing with balance beams is deservedly popular among both beginners and experienced anglers. It provides an excellent opportunity to relax in nature, get a lot of positive emotions and catch beautiful and strong fish.

Time for effective fishing with a balance beam

The choice of gear and bait for winter fishing depends not only on the fisherman himself, but also on the compatibility of a particular fishing method with the reservoir, weather and other factors. Now let's move on to fishing with a balancer in more detail. To effectively fish with a balance beam, you need to choose a time when the predator is ready to take any bait, that is, during the peaks of its activity, if not during the peaks, then for an average predator the balance beam will also work.

Balancers are considered excellent search baits; they are simply irreplaceable when searching for fish in unknown bodies of water. If you find yourself on a pond for the first time, then you cannot do without a balancer. Also, a balancer can be simply an indispensable assistant for fishing, which requires constant raising and lowering of the bait. This is not its only advantage; also with active biting, the balancer has a lot of advantages. It easily breaks through the sludge in the hole (this saves time on cleaning it) and allows you to shake the fish off the hook without wasting time on unhooking it. In short, a balancer is simply irreplaceable when fishing for predators in winter.

Well, no one will enthusiastically take off their mittens in order to bait a bloodworm on the bait. But I fish with reelless baits, you say, but I also have to take off the fish, and here again I have to take off my mittens. The balancer can be quite successfully used with mittens; there is no constant need to remove them. But this does not mean that the balancer does not require almost any action from the angler, and it is not considered a bait for “women”, that is, sissies and lazy people.