Strikemaster...my opinion..

[pulleye16]

Is the only reason so much like them is because their from MN? All you ever read about is all the problems people face with these augers. I own two and they've been nothing but problems. One, which I'd blame the motor over SM, but even after they serviced, my mag2000 won't start in less then 20-30 pulls, sometimes not at all.

From cold starts, platsic handles, to broken recoils, and just poor augers-why do we continue to support them?

Yeah, people have goods ones that are old, but i"ve seen older jiffys and i'd take an older eskimo over a SM any day.

Light weight? I'd give you that but then i'd go Nils. Durability? NIls, jiffy, eskimo...probably HT before SM. Just seems like they're always problems with them and their breaking down. Just watch a see that just about every week another SM auger issue will arise on here.

So, why does everyone keep supporting them?

[buzbunni]

Why I like Strikemaster:

15 yr old Mag 2000; have never had a problem with it.

Can't speak to the new models.

[bigblue]

I have a 20 yearold jiffy 30 a new honda strikmaster a 10 year old strikmaster Lazer with a Tech and a 5 year old Eskimo Stingray viper. They have all been good any needed work and service Yes sir they are machines man made I prefer REDHEADS myself.

[DTro]

If the magnitude of people owned Nils as do SM, you would see many more posts and issues.

All mechanical pieces of equipment and 2 cycle engines are going to have issues, plain and simple especially if not maintained properly.

A lot of people have "wasted their money" and have been happy ever since. The Solo Lazer is a VERY GOOD auger and while the motor might not be rated for as long as service as the Tanaka on the Nils, having used both, not dealing with a hole full of slush (which you deal with on every hole with the Nils) sure is nice.

There is no best, or no perfect and you simply are not "wasting your money" on ANY power auger. They all do what they are supposed to do.

[otterman91105]

I own a 14 year old strike master and never had a problem with it unless it's something dumb that i do like knock it over.

[dfeste]

Always laugh when the best argument for a Strikemaster over a Nils is the slush in the hole. I'll keeping scooping out the slush.

[DTro]

Nobody is arguing when you drill dozens of holes, its a REAL advantage.

[traveler]

My brother bought a strikelight 4 stroke about 5 years ago, he's very good about maitenence, yet has had 2 augers replaced, and now has it in for servicing because it won't start worth a darn. And he only ice fishes a few times a year....light duty at most. I guess I'd look at a different brand.

oh wait, I did:) Jiffy Pro4:)

[cichlid_baby]

Always laugh when the best argument for a Strikemaster over a Nils is the slush in the hole. I'll keeping scooping out the slush.

As with any kind of auger... to get rid of the slush or at the very least minimize it.. I always just give it a bit of a rev before lifting the auger out of the hole. This virtually leaves the hole clean with only a slight amount of slush left to be scooped if needed.

More often than not... If I am hole hopping.. I don't even bother with cleaning out the holes completely as I won't be spending more than a minute or two at each hole.

If you use this method.. it shouldn't matter which auger brand you are using in terms of amount of slush left behind.

[Alagnak]

Ford (SM), Chevy (jiffy), Dodge (Eskimo), Toyota (Nils) :-)

We've been around and around and around with this before. I think they all make some nice products and probably some junk toz- it's just what you are use too, what you've used before and had good or bad experiences, how much you want to pay, how important some features are like weight, how you take care of it, and most importantly- LUCK. Everyone has a lemon once and a while.

I had the luxury of testing out the very first strike master lazer that came in to my dad's sport shop years ago. This was after having many problems with the top of the line Artisan auger that was made 20 miles down the road at the time. 3 years ago I gave that lazer auger to my dad and he still uses it nearly every day at one of his two shacks as he's retired. I had no reason to not go back to another SM and bought the 3 horse Solo and have been very happy with it as well. End of MY story for now.

It's too bad you've had such bad experiences. If I had I'm sure I would switch products too.

[ClownColor]

Ford (SM), Chevy (jiffy), Dodge (Eskimo), Toyota (Nils) :-)

We've been around and around and around with this before. I think they all make some nice products and probably some junk toz- it's just what you are use too, what you've used before and had good or bad experiences, how much you want to pay, how important some features are like weight, how you take care of it, and most importantly- LUCK. Everyone has a lemon once and a while.

I had the luxury of testing out the very first strike master lazer that came in to my dad's sport shop years ago. This was after having many problems with the top of the line Artisan auger that was made 20 miles down the road at the time. 3 years ago I gave that lazer auger to my dad and he still uses it nearly every day at one of his two shacks as he's retired. I had no reason to not go back to another SM and bought the 3 horse Solo and have been very happy with it as well. End of MY story for now.

It's too bad you've had such bad experiences. If I had I'm sure I would switch products too.

I wounldn't say its like a chevy vs ford debate at all. SM has had WAY more problems then any other company out there. Like the OP stated, just look at the history of SM complaints/problems from this forum and everywhere.

Yes-there are bad machines with all companies but unless you're blind, many more come out of SM. I will be switching away from SM and buying a new auger next year or when they go on sale.

[fisherman-andy]

If the magnitude of people owned Nils as do SM, you would see many more posts and issues.

I agree with everything else except the above. But there's no way we will know or can assume for sure. Especially if the argument is reliability over the powerhead. Tanaka powerhead > Solo powerhead.

Aside that ive been very satisfied with my Solo Lazer Pro.

[CaptainMusky]

So a guy "only" uses something a few times a year and has nothing but problems? There's a shock. Probably the same gas used 3 yrs ago. Makes a lot of sense apparently training courses are required before buying anything mechanical. I have ice Fished for nearly 30 years and owned two augers. I bought the first used and the second new

Only time I have had issues were gas or fuel related. Replaced my gas line for 61 cents which gives me enough if it happens again. Most issues are caused by the owners

Poor starting? Bad fuel not stabilized Carb gummed up etc. Gas tank splits? Loosen gas cap due to excessive gas pressure in hot temps (in owners manual). Broken handle? Dropped. So are you suggesting strike master needs to protect us from ourselves? Time for some responsibility on our own part for issues and not blaming someone else.

[Esox_Magnum]

Tanakas have 30+ years backing their reliability, we have at most 7? years or less on the rest of the current auger motors on the market....Not often you hear of a Tanaka problem, might be a reason companies that need reliable gas powered tools run them...

I have friends that do powerline work and have the same Tanaka motors on their equipment we use on our augers and some of them are 20 years old and still work great and get used way more than what we use our augers...

[harvey lee]

If the magnitude of people owned Nils as do SM, you would see many more posts and issues.

All mechanical pieces of equipment and 2 cycle engines are going to have issues, plain and simple especially if not maintained properly.

A lot of people have "wasted their money" and have been happy ever since. The Solo Lazer is a VERY GOOD auger and while the motor might not be rated for as long as service as the Tanaka on the Nils, having used both, not dealing with a hole full of slush (which you deal with on every hole with the Nils) sure is nice.

There is no best, or no perfect and you simply are not "wasting your money" on ANY power auger. They all do what they are supposed to do.

\

\

Well stated Darren.

I had 2 smaller issues with my Solo this past week. One cost a $1 to fix and took me 5 minutes. The other will be fixed tomorrow and I would bet for NC.

This Solo auger has cut approx 300-600 holes minimum per season for the past 4-5 seasons. Always starts on the 3rd pull and cuts as well as any auger out there. Just about as light in weight too. Yes, the Nils does weigh maybe 2 pounds less. But, it also leaves alot of slush in the holes.

I would say that is pretty darn good. NO, I am not a Pro staff for StrikeMaster, just a happy customer.

I at this time own both and when I go to the lake, morwe times than not, the Solo comes with. They both are very well built augers, I simply choose to not have to clean out the holes. Yes, I have cranked on the throttle and sent water flying everywhere to get the slush out. I simply choose not to have to do that.

I do not believe a Nils is any faster than my Solo. Well, some are as they have been rejetted with a larger jet for a higher fuel mixture. MIne was rejetted and yes, it did make it run better, less idle time and it cut like crazy. I guess my Solo could do the same.

I would never say anything negative about my Nils or my Solo.

[sunniewally]

LAST GOOD AUGER SM MADE WAS THE MAG lll,

[minnesotathorn]

my 4 stroke sm with the robins engine has only had 1 problem & that was with the composite auger. called them & chose a new steel auger in exchange. no charge, no excuses just great customer service. got the new one in about 2 days & they supplied a label to return the old one. the thing starts with 1 or 2 pulls every time. at end of every season i run the engine dry & the next year fill with new gas, prime & it starts right up. i would not consider a differant brand as i have owned both eskimo & jiffy before this one. no problems with them either just prefer the sm.

[Dave]

~10 year old StrikeMaster Lazer Mag...no issues. I changed the spark plug thinking it'd be a good idea.

[thatoneguy]

I've had an electric Strikemaster for 7 years. Had one problem in all that time - the switch broke inside the powerhead. I dropped it off at HQ, expecting it would take a day or two. They called me in about 2 hours, and not only had they fixed the switch, they sharpened my blades at no charge.

Strikemaster customer for life.

[gonehunting]

I think this thread has to be taken with a grain of salt. Another Ford vs. debate. I own a Strikemaster Solo and have been really happy with this auger. I did put a carb kit in it which I felt shouldn't have been needed being this new but it is running like a charm now. Previously I owned a Lazer Mag Express that ran flawlessly for 6 years. I sold it to upgrade to the Solo.

Three weeks ago I had a guy come borrow my auger after attempting to start his Jiffy for 20 minutes and never did get it started. We went to Lake Winnipeg two years ago and my buddy had a brand new Jiffy that was the joke of the trip for cold starting. Many threads have been started about Jiffy propane augers leaking propane.

I also once owned an Eskimo that ran beautifully but didn't cut worth a darn.

As several have stated all brands can have issues. There will be lemons in all brands. That includes Nils - google search it yourself.

Strikemaster customer service is yet to be tested now being bought out by Rapala but this just occurred in the last year.

We will definetely have to wait and see where this company goes but I am far from becoming a Jiffy fan and I'm not paying $650 for a auger powerhead only at this point. Just my opinion!

[JSK76]

I bought a new Jiffy Legend 3hp and ran it for 10 years until SM came out with the Solo then I sold it and bought the Magnum Solo. In 10 years the only problem I had was the clutch was starting to go so it would turn the drill even at idle. The pull rope broke. It would hang up at the bottom of the hole (did since new) and it was always a hard starter from day one. Sometime I would wonder if it would ever start especially if it was really cold. Other then being loud, hard to start and heavy it got the job done.

I'm not going to say my solo has been the best thing ever but it starts incredibly easy, it light, doesn't hang up at the bottom of the hole and is quieter and faster then my Jiffy. The only time it let me down somewhat was on a snowmobile fishing trip up in Canada the throttle stuck but was probably do to snow dust but I did have a cover on it when it was on the snowmobile. Pull rope stuck (I did do the WD40 fix on the grease when new) kill switch fell to pieces and the 224 auger bit I put on it must have hit some debris and got dull, it drilled one hole fine and the next it wouldn't hardly cut at all but it was at the end of the trip and didn't need to drill anymore holes. Even with the problems I was able to still use it with the help of a leatherman to fix the recoil. The morning I had most of the problems, actually all of them other then the kill switch it was -25 and I know my Jiffy wouldn't have even started.

I could buy back my Jiffy from my buddy, but even with the problems I had with my SM on that one trip I wouldn't do it. I still like my SM but I'm really thinking about the ION for fishing around home and making my buddy bring his auger when we go to Canada.

[leech~~]

LAST GOOD AUGER SM MADE WAS THE MAG lll,

Plus 1, I have an old Mag III and Magnum 2000 and the Mag III always starts no matter how much I abuse it.

[20lbSloughShark]

I think this is rediculous. Augers are not complicated machines, they are simple motors (they should be, we'll see about this 4-stroke phase) with an auger on the bottom. Lots of brands use the same motor. I know for years bassically all brands used the 2 stroke tecumseh.

[gonehunting]

Google Search - Nils Ice auger problems - Nils have their issues too. Nils is a good auger from what I hear. Why is it that we don't see them on the shelves of Scheels, FF, GM, if they are the best thing since sliced bread? Again, all will have issues from time to time.

[Jeremy airjer W]

Ford (SM), Chevy (jiffy), Dodge (Eskimo), Toyota (Nils) :-)

Apparently I'm driving he wrong auger!