The TECNA 9346IL is a food-industry retractor tool balancer for tools weighing 4.4-8.8 lb, built for washdown areas - food and beverage, dairy, meat and poultry processing, bakery, and anywhere the equipment is cleaned and sanitised as part of the shift.

Cable travel is 8.2 ft (2,500 mm) and capacity is adjustable across 4.4-8.8 lb (2-4 kg). It is a retractor, so the tool returns to its rest position when you let go rather than staying where you leave it.

What makes it the food version is rust-free materials throughout. The aluminium housing is hard anodised, the cable is stainless steel, and the loop and hook are stainless with added wear resistance. The grease is NSF-H1 food grade, and so are the cable guide, the shock absorber and the wire cap.

This model has an automatic ratchet lock. It stops the cable rewinding so you can work without it pulling back on the tool. Let the tool rise slowly to lock it; to release, pull down slightly and let it rise quickly. Let it rise at a sensible speed and it will not lock when you do not want it to. The lock can be disabled by tightening a screw, if you would rather not have it.

Do not need the ratchet lock? The TECNA 9336IL is this same balancer without it, at the same capacity and stroke.

Specifications:

• Capacity: 4.4-8.8 lb (2-4 kg), adjustable
• Cable travel: 8.2 ft (2,500 mm)
• Rust-free materials throughout
• Aluminium housing with hard anodising
• NSF-H1 certified food grade grease
• Ambient temperature: 41 to 140 F (5 to 60 C)
• Unit weight: 6.92 lb (3.14 kg)
• Stainless steel cable
• Food grade cable guide, shock absorber and wire cap
• Stainless steel loop and hook with increased wear resistance
• Adjustable capacity
• Safety suspension
• Safety device against load dropping due to spring breakage
• Automatic ratchet lock to stop cable rewinding
• Adjustable stroke limiting device
• Inert spring drum assembly

Extension cables are available if the balancer has to hang higher than the tool needs to reach: 500 mm (7260000454) and 1,000 mm (7260000456), stainless steel, with a 80 mm carabiner.

The structure you hang it from has to be stronger than five times the balancer weight plus the maximum load - and if several balancers share one structure, five times the total of all of them, each on its own independent connection point.

Every production lot is sample-tested: a static test at 1.25 times the maximum rated load held for ten minutes at full stroke, to DIN 15112, and a dynamic test at 1.1 times maximum load run for an hour.

Other capacities in the 9346LIL-9350IL series: 9346LIL (1.1-4.4 lb), 9347IL (8.8-13.2 lb), 9348IL (13.2-17.6 lb), 9349IL (17.6-22 lb), 9350IL (22-31 lb).

If you need the load to stay where you leave it instead of returning to rest, you want a zero-gravity balancer rather than a retractor. The food industry range covers both.

Not working in a food environment? The TECNA 9346 is the same retractor in the standard build, at the same capacity and stroke.

Supported in the USA by Tool Balancers USA.