Lets talk Augers

[Chumba]

So im in the market for a new Auger this year.

I want something that will not smoke out my shack, and is good at busting up the holes after they refreez week after week.

I was thinking the Strikemaster with the 4 stroke motor. I saw one last year and was impressed with the lack of fumes.

Are these really the best way to go? Does the 4 stroke start easy in the cold? I really want a strong auger, the one I have now is old and it can be a pain to bust through the holes.

Any other downsides to the 4 stroke? Heavier? Should I be giving the propane augers a look? Also I was going to wait until the ice show to see if I can get a deal. Is that my best bet?

[BoxMN]

Don't get a Lazer blade for reopening. I love my Strikemaster Lazer Pro for speed and cutting new holes, but it didn't work well for trying to reopen frozen holes. My older Jiffy used to be great at that, but it smoked and was heavy, and I no longer have it. My older SM with Chipper blade is better.

Get a chipper blade on whatever motor you want, or electric. I am rather new at reopneing holes in perm shack, and the Lazer is not the one for that. My two cents.

[Brad B]

Have you though about looking at the electric augers out there. If you only will use it in a shack this might be the way to go.

[Chumba]

Well it won't be always used for the shack. Also a main concern is power and I worry the electrics can't compete with gas on 2 ft plus of ice.

[gonehunting]

I agree that the Strikemaster 4-stroke matched with a chipper style drill would be a great way to go. I have heard alot of good things about the Jiffy propane augers also. Although the original propane auger was too heavy in my opinion.

[B-man715]

I bought an Ion last year and absolutely love it! Got a great price on it at the show.

It handles 30"+ of ice with plenty of power. I have never used it to re-open holes, but I believe it is supposed to work well for that? I'm sure others will chime in....

It obviously has it's limits, but for a wheelhouse and your tip ups it is hard to beat. No smoke, no warm up, no mixing or spilling fuel, no stains or burns on the fish house walls, etc.

If you are an all day run and gunner, go with one that runs on dinosaur juice

If you do both, have both gas and electric.

Ice augers are like tools. Sure a vice grip can get most jobs done, but a specific wrench for different applications is unbeatable

My only concern with the Ion is battery availability in say 5 or 10 years...... You know dang well the product will evolve and change to something faster, lighter, etc and the battery will surely change as well.

But they may very well be rebuildable (???) (if not available)

[Mid-Lake Rock]

I run a 4 stroke Strikemaster and use two drills.

I have the Strike-Lite with the 4 Stroke Robin engine. I agree with the other posters that you do not want to reopen holes with Lazer blades. I run and gun with the Lazer blades and purchased a 10" chipper for the wheel house. It takes a minute to switch between the chipper and the Lazer. I picked up the chipper for $75.

The four stroke will not make your fish house stink from fumes and it rips through ice well. I've not had problems with cold weather starts with the Robin. I'm not familiar with the Jiffy or Honda to know if that is a problem.

The Strikemaster 4 strokes weigh the same as the 2 stroke solos. Jiffy Pro 4 is heavier and the new Pro-4 Lite is closer to the Strikemaster.

I have heard great things about the ION and the Jiffy Propane augers. The Pro-4 is too heavy for my liking, however the new Lite series from Jiffy looks like a good option.

[PFUNK]

I started using a Jiffy pro 4 last season and it worked awesome. Cuts really smoothly, though I never tried reopening holes with it. It's heavy, but I'm a small guy and it never bothers me too much or slows me down.

[Scott O.]

I'd say your best bet is probably to look at the new Jiffy Pro-4 propane model. Last year's model 4 was a bit heavy, but the new one is noticeably lighter and the stealth ripper blades work well reopening ice holes. Plus it is quiet and has almost no smell. No worrying about gas, oil, or mixing either of them.

[Sand Burr]

If you would like to handle the Jiffy Pro4 light propane or Pro4 propane I have them both. I am near Mora which isn't to far from you I think... I have been using propane auger for the last 3 years and absolutely love them. I have yet to drill a real hole with the lite version but come December red lake will be full of holes. I have also re-drilled holes plenty of times with them. I am also a big believer in the Ford - Chevy argument with augers. All I can offer is a chance to handle one before buying.

[WalleyeVision]

I live up on Lake of the Woods and have been running an electric Ice Gator for the past 2 years. It has no trouble at all going through whatever I throw at it. If I end up moving my house during the day I drill 24+ holes and it has never had any issues. Like one of the posters above mentioned it's hard to tell how long a battery will last, but I'm getting ready to start year 3 and haven't had any issues yet. The biggest trouble I had was finding a dealer that had them in stock, but that was a couple years ago, so maybe they've figured out that problem. The Ion wasn't out yet when I bought my Gator, but I've heard good things about them as well. One of the best parts about these electric augers is that they are extremely light and the only thing you have to do to start them is plug the 2 wires together and press the button. Plus no gas smell in your vehicle or your fish house.

[Chumba]

Anyone get an auger at the st paul show? Think They will have good deals?

What about size? For those with a perm house, is 10 inch a lot better than 8 inch? I saw they have the 4 stroke in a 10 inch.. Go big or go home right? Think they will be hard to find?

[Chad Peterson]

There will be some great deals at the St.Paul Ice show, and I would stop by and take a look at the Clam augers. The Ice Auger Conversion Kit will be a hit with the run and gun fisherman. I have my eye on one of those augers. They are light weight and the best thing is they will fit in your one man shelter.

I'll be working the show, so stop by and take a look.

[grundy]

I also have been using an Ice Gator for the past 5 years and am still using the original batteries. I picked up another power head last year with the smaller batteries (lighter unit) and plan on using that for when I use my one man portable. These augers are awesome with plenty of power. I use a strikemaster lazer drill head on both power heads.

[NoDak10]

Im looking at getting the new honda powered strikemaster, has anybody used a 8' chipper drill with it? I need the chipper for one lake I fish that often has sandy/dirty ice.

[hamms-scooter]

Chumba send me a pm I may be able to help you out.

[swmndeerhunter]

I'll just throw this out there. My strikemaster used to smoke and leave tons of fumes in the house when drilling. We always open the windows and doors when doing it, but since I've been using Amsoil instead of the Strikemaster oil its no where near as bad. Given I fish in portables and with tip ups most of the time, I still like the normal 2 stroke strikemasters (or Jiffys). With that said if you're going to be opening holes you'll definitely want to get a chipper blade. The lazer blades do not work at all and I wouldn't be suprised if it isn't hard on them given the amount of jumping around the auger does when redrilling. They have come a long ways with electric augers, but I think the only 10" augers I've seen are the Big Volt Strikemasters, which you have to have a battery to hook it up to. This works in a house, but have fun on your tip up holes. This might start an arguement, but I think if you are going to be reopening holes, you'll be wanting to drill 10 inchers to start with cuz they always seem to shrink a bit.

[dan z]

Polar plunge drill ? welcome to the forum

Im looking at getting the new honda powered strikemaster, has anybody used a 8' chipper drill with it? I need the chipper for one lake I fish that often has sandy/dirty ice.

[bassNspear]

jiffy propane, hands down

[Gus]

Many combinations out there that work for folks.

Myself, I've had 3 augers.

Strikemaster laser 2 stroke

Jiffy 4 Propane

Strikemaster 4 stroke with the robin engine.

Strikemaster 2 stroke from the mid 90's has been a work horse for me. It just stunk too much in the perm. Still have it as a back up and use it every now and again.

Jiffy propane, yikes... Heavy, Wide (had to modify part of my house just to drill a hole without hitting things, Threw chips EVERYWHERE, Oh and left me stranded when it wouldn't start 4 miles out on Leech during prime setup time. ONLY good thing was the exhaust had a nice smell to it. I didn't even get a whole tank of propane burned through it before it bit the dust. Thorne Bros were great to work with and let me exchange it for the 4 stroke strikemaster.

Strikemaster Robin 4 stroke. Light, starts every time, very fume free, powerfull. I have the laser blades for hole hopping, and change that out to a 10" ripper for the perm. It has no problem reopening holes in the perm with power to spare.

Again, different strokes for different folks. I love my setup and wouldn't change it. Except maybe to try the Honda.

[Chumba]

hamms-scooter, looks like you are over the PM limit. im at jmbirke3m AT Hotmail.com if you want to shoot me an email, it would be much appreciated.

I really think the 4 stroke is the best of all worlds. I need power, light, and light on fumes.

Oh and I see that Joes sporting goods is having a sale this weekend..

[cold one sd]

I'd say your best bet is probably to look at the new Jiffy Pro-4 propane model. Last year's model 4 was a bit heavy, but the new one is noticeably lighter and the stealth ripper blades work well reopening ice holes. Plus it is quiet and has almost no smell. No worrying about gas, oil, or mixing either of them.

The new Jiffy Pro 4 Lite doesn't have the Stealth type blades. It has the Ripper blade according to a friend who sells them. That's why I'm thinking of buying the heavy Pro 4 model.I guess I could check into using the drill from my 2 hp Stealth.

[hamms-scooter]

You are over your limit as well. I emptied mine...

[Hawg]

They do throw a lot of ice chips too remember. Clean up can be a pain.