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Size of your hole!

MN_BEEF

By MN_BEEF
in Ice Fishing

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DaSwede Rising Star

DaSwede

Posted
Posted

Looking at new augers and wondering about 8" vs. 10" hole size. advantage/disadvantages.

Thanks,

Beef

8 is big enough. I bring my kids with me, and I'm afraid a foot/leg will go down the hole. I don't want to have to worry about that.

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tsande00 Experienced

tsande00

Posted
Posted

I went with an 8" because:

*I dont like the idea my kids (or other's) can fit down a 10" hole, not to mention bigger area for cell phones, keys, my leg, etc to fall in.

*Faster drilling holes, easier on motor

*Less weight

*There is no northern, walleye, etc that can't fit up a 8" hole

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reinhard1 Grand Master

reinhard1

Posted
Posted

i have a 10 inch. i like the extra view i get while sight fishing for trout. however my next one will be the 8 inch. that is all you realy need in my opinion. as you get older the 10 gets heavier. the new 4 strokes and propane augers are so much lighter and easier to transport. good luck.

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Mike Walerak Mentor

Mike Walerak

Posted
Posted

For everything except big pike I would go with an 8" hole. There are many advantages to it. One is my kids are not as likely to fall in it which increase fishing time. Another is your flasher will not fit down it. Most flashers will and do fit down a 10" hole. I've seen it. Anoher is the fish cannot turn around in an 8" hole as easy as they can a 10"er. You will loose less fish with an 8" hole. Another is weight. Ive cut as many as 200 holes in a day and my back thanks me for going with the 8". Augers and blades are usually cheaper as well.

Actually, I use my 6" hand auger in anycase where I know where I will be fishing and if I am hiking in, given the ice is less that 20". I have pulled 12 pound plus pike and 15" crappies through it. I've also used it walleye fishing.

As for auger reccomendations take a look at the StrikeMaster Lazer Mag 8". I am in my second season with mind and it has performed flawlessly.

Yes the 10" can seem appealing to most people but many regret going that route ules they are pike fisherman.

mw

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Getanet Grand Master

Getanet

Posted
Posted

I bought a 10" and am happy with it. If I could do it all over again I'd probably go with an 8", but only because it would be a little lighter and cut through the thick ice a little easier/faster.

If you mainly fish out of a permanent house, or don't move much once you have a portable set up, fishing out of a 10" is nice and I would imagine doesn't freeze up quite as fast.

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GatorBait Mentor

GatorBait

Posted
Posted

I went with an 8" because:

*I dont like the idea my kids (or other's) can fit down a 10" hole, not to mention bigger area for cell phones, keys, my leg, etc to fall in.

Yep, this post is about to get nuked just due to this reasoning alone. Seen it happen last year. But with good reason I must add. I was once a victim to this in my younger years...Very scary.

Anyways, the only feasible time I will use a 10" hole is when I'm landing 20-25lb pike on the Winnebago Chain about every 5yrs during the shad die off. I enjoy the extra hole room with these toothy critters to help allow for a proper C&R. Otherwise, a 8in hole works for me for everything else and is alot easier on the auger and me at the end of the day. That, and I tend to apply Murphy's Law alot with dropping things down the hole, seeing my Electronics sink is not an appealing thought to me.

FYI, I've had 2 northern not fit through a 8" hole w/o causing undue stress to them. Could I have horsed them out, yeah possbily....but that's against my belief to proper management of C&R and fair treatment of the fish. Mind you, these fish were in the 28 to 30lb range.

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CrappieNight Enthusiast

CrappieNight

Posted
Posted

I run a 10" Cobra and it's a heavy pig but I love it. I also have a 6" hand auger for early ice and panfish since it is lighter to haul in the sled.

One benefit of the 10" hole is perm fishing. I may not make it out to the house every day so when I chisel out the hole to save on the exhaust fumes, I tend to lose a little size as it freezes over and the 10" offers some relief and saves on having to re-auger the holes out as often.

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mww24 Experienced

mww24

Posted
Posted

I had a 9 inch eskimo and just traded it for a 8 inch shaft. I have an 8 year old. When he was 5 we were out and as i was cleaning up i told him to stay put. being the 5 year old he was he decided to not listen and stepped into one of my holes. He went knee deep into it. We had a quarter mile at least walk back to the truck in a low temp day. luckily i flagged a guy on a wheeler to tow us in. things could have ended very badly for his little toes in that cold weather and being wet. If you have kids an 8 is probably the best option. You can always buy a bigger shaft to have when your not with the tikes.

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Hoffer Mentor

Hoffer

Posted
Posted

The 9 inch was a perfect fit for me. I like the little extra room - and i dont notice it cutting any different than my buddies 8 inch.

The one thing I havent heard mention is tip-up fishing. I do alot of that with the round style thermal tip-ups. I think they would work in a 10 inch hole - but just barely- the 9 inch hole is perfect. They cover the hole just right and I have fished all night long with tip-ups over the 9 inch hole in very cold temps and have never had an issue with the hole freezing.

So, if I was to do over again and had only the 8 inch or 10 inch - I would go with the 8 inch - mainly because my tip-ups would be too small to fit over the 10 inch holes.

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