Nils Master

[Steve Foss]

The Tanaka/Nils combo is the best gas powerhead/drill in the industry, IMO. I've cut with it a LOT.

FWIW, I put my IceGator battery powerhead with Nils 8 inch drill up against the Tanaka gas powerhead with Nils 8 inch drill a few days ago. I consistently beat the Tanaka by 4 to 6 seconds through two feet of ice.

Now, I really don't give a fat you know what about whether I cut faster than the next guy/gal, because in the end it's all just about getting a hole to fish through, and a fast hole doesn't a good angler make.

I'm just saying.

[thedeadsea]

That is pretty impressive STF.

I wonder how fast a Nils bit would be on one of the new 3 hp heads, say with a little tuning and exhaust mod.

[Northlander]

Steve 4-6 seconds better in 2' of ice? Sad to say it but somethings wrong with the math.

[Quackaddict9]

Quote:

Those who have tried my Nils all want one and several have purchsed them. None have had any complaints but the blade cover, wich everyone struggles with I know, and the little slush in the hole. No biggy I have a ice scoop.

I don't mind my boots getting a little wet while I have dry feet...I drill most of the slush out on full throttle on the way back up while the hole is cut, not much slush. I also have a ice scoop too to use if need to.

[Jim Almquist]

Steve 4-6 seconds better in 2' of ice? Sad to say it but somethings wrong with the math.

Northlander the IceGator has close to twice the RPMs as a Nils so it only stands to reason it should be faster. The only way to beat it would be to race up to 75 holes so when his battery is dieing you might have a chance

[Shack]

Slurpie--I can tell you of a story from this weekend that will give you some comparison between Nils and SM. At the end of a tournament, four of the contestants who all own the new SM Solo were racing each other. One of the guys had about two feet of pull cord hanging out that wouldn't retract. As they were competing, a guy I know said he wanted to race them with my Nils. So he went and grabbed it and got in on the action. I wasn't watching them (I knew what the outcome would be anyway) but my fishing partner stuck his head in the truck and said, "The Nils is kicking their butts." Surprise, surprise. This happened earlier in the year at a different event. The guy who was racing my auger against the SMs said he drilled five holes and part of a sixth in the time the fastest of the Solos drilled just three. Throw in the weight difference (about five pounds--very significant when you're drilling 50, 100 or more holes) and it's a no-brainer. The Solo owners always give me a hard time about owning a Nils, all of which amounts to just about nothing when you consider the lame complaints they have. Things like, the Solo has more horsepower--so what, Nils is still faster. The more hp only adds more weight. The hole is too small--I own a six inch, you can buy them with an eight inch cut. It leaves too much slush in the hole. Buy a scoop. It takes a few seconds to clean out the hole. The blades are too expensive. SM has great customer service, what do you do when your auger breaks? Well, I've had mine for about five winters, I ice fish a lot, and haven't had one mechanical issue. Besides, there are plenty of small motor shops that service Tanaka motors. One thing I've learned through all this is old affiliations die hard. Even when it's obvious Nils has a superior machine the SM boys won't admit it. If a SM performed like the Nils does, you bet those guys would be bragging about it. In fact, they do. They're so impressed by the increased cutting speed that Solo has over the old SMs, indeed they should be, but it still doesn't beat a Nils. I have no affiliation with Nils. None whatsoever. I'm just an extremely satisfied customer who out drills everyone else. So if you want the opinion of someone who owns a Nils and has seen and experienced what it does compared to the best of the SM models.....buy yourself a Nils and own the Cadillac of augers!!

juggs, these race tests I have seen on video and even on the lake are most times not all that accurate. From my experiences in the past, I have no doubt the Nills auger is indeed faster with me when put head to head with my current auger. IMO "racing" augers on the ice with a group of guys is not a good point to base which auger is quicker than the next. There is no control to base from. Most times when a race like this happens, it comes down to things like how fit and how good of an ice hole driller that person is. You can race Nils augers head to head, but give one to someone who is not in the best shape and give the other to someone who is in good, you will see someone finish first

As far as finding a Nills this time of year, that would be hard. If you do, buy it up . After using a new Solo two weeks ago at the Fishapoolza pre-tournament hole drilling, I was very impressed. I burned through roughly 300 holes, 15-20' squared off in under 2 hours and actually could have kept going. IMO it is a very good auger. Some of the younger bucks burned through more holes. Some of the normal middle aged guys burned threw less.

[Borch]

Mimbach Fleet in St Cloud still have a couple 2 weeks ago.

[Steve Foss]

Steve 4-6 seconds better in 2' of ice? Sad to say it but somethings wrong with the math.

Been there, clocked that, Steve. Against two different Nils/Tanakas. These were not planned, but were just impromptu things as they came up. As Jim mentioned, it's an rpm thing, and the torque of the Ice Gator is strong, too. How much have you cut with an Ice Gator?

I'm not one to give a carp about whether I'm drilling holes faster or slower than the next guy. It's really about the fishing, not the fist-pumping. But since there's a good bit of resistance to the Ice Gator among the gas engine crowd, I figured it would be smart to have actual timed comparisons handy if and when the subject comes up. We all know any good running gas auger will still be cutting holes LONG after my Ice Gator has lost its charge, and ever since first cutting with the Nils/Tanaka a few years ago I'm happy to say as often as it comes up that it's the best gas auger on the market.

One of the guys I timed with mentioned his Nils blade was dull. The other guy just shrugged and shook his head and started fishing, which of course is the whole point of drilling the holes in the first place.

[slurpie]

Hey Borch i checked their site and they say nothing about having Nils available. Wish i would have known they handle them drove right by there today.

[deadeye]

I heard that Marine General may have a couple left. Its purely a shot in the dark at this point but it might be worth a call to see if they got one for ya.

[Northlander]

I heard that Marine General may have a couple left. Its purely a shot in the dark at this point but it might be worth a call to see if they got one for ya.

As of 2 days ago they had a few Nils 8" left but I doubt they have any extra blades.

[Borch]

Looks like they had extensions as well.

[slurpie]

Picked one up yesterday now gotta wait until next season to use it. My brother was with and he's about 5'10" and the auger is really tall for a guy that short. I'm 6'1" and it will be a little easier to use. I've personally ownwed all the major augers now and weighed them all the weight is a big deal to me being we drill alot of holes in a day. Jiffy was the heaviest eskimo was alittle lighter at 34 lb i have 2 strikemaster they both come in at 27 lb and the nils is 22 lb. I have never been disapointed with the strikemaster but that is a big diffrence. Now i gotta see if it cuts as good as everyone talks but that is a ways off. Purchased at Mimbach Fleet in St Cloud they are nice people to talk. Advised them to advertise they handle theese augers. Excited for next season already.