electric auger question?

[mrpike1973]

hi i have thought about a battery auger. can you by it with the battery in the auger or do you need a big 12 volt to lug around if it is a battery pack internal how long do they last? also do i need to bring it in every night from a cold truck or will the battery hold charge. thanks for the help looking at pros and cons thanks

[sportfish]

dont get the Strkemaster auger with the battrie built in !! junk !

[sunniewally]

+1

[Hawg]

Do a search with the box on the LEFT, learn everything you can including the old wives tales, research the net for a week, read all the naysayers posts, and then go buy an ION and you'll be very happy. Unless you drill more than 30-40 holes a day and then stay gas.

[JSK76]

If your looking to go electric you have 3 good choices and I've owned 2 of the 3.

Probably the most common choice is a ION and for good reason. It's about as fast as a gas, smooth as butter can reopen old holes and is very light. The only draw back is you need to keep the battery warm when it's very cold out but the battery slides out easy and you can easily keep it warm . The biggest it comes in is 7.5".

If you just fish in a fish house with a battery and want a 8.25" or 10.25" hole then look at the Strikemaster BigVolt. This thing is just a beast! I sold mine to buy a ION but I really miss the the 10.25" hole size on really cold nights when the ION hole has shrunk about 25% from the cold. Better be in good physical shape and not have any wrist problems because this thing has TORQUE! It has a 40 amp motor! In the past I didn't keep a battery in my house because I ran every thing off a small generator so lugging a car battery was the only drawback for me, if you keep a battery in the house I see no drawbacks.

Ice Gator is the 3rd one I would look at. I've never owned one but have looked into them. There the most expensive of the 3 and it doesn't come with a auger bit. There ridiculously fast, can turn a 10" auger bit, and have very good battery life. And there Ion battery will work in much colder temps then the ION will. I think some had a forward and reverse option (not sure if they still do) so you can push the slush back down the hole. The only drawbacks I have seen is cost, availability and customer service. The CS issues I've read about we're in the past and I thought I read someone else took over that part and it was better now? To be honest if I had a dealer in my area i would probably own one. I live within 20 min of Leech, Bemidji and just a bit over a hour of LOW, Red and Winni but no one carries them in my area. I've actually never even seen one in person.

[Billy G]

From what I've heard the ION works very good, like said before only if you don't plan on drilling more than 40 holes a day.

[Crigger]

I have had my Ion for a year now and I am very pleased with it! No complaints so far! Best part is not having to worry about it starting up in the cold.

[Crappyfisherman]

Got a Clam Plate last winter, put a Milwaukee Fuel 18 volt drill and a blue 6 inch Mora hand auger on it.

I was very impressed with it. I have the 4 amp hour batteries and drilled 30 to 50 holes per day with it on one battery. The cold didn't seem to bother the battery so I left it on all day at -5 and it worked fine. I tried it with a 6 inch Lazer thinking it would cut better. It actually cut better with the Mora. The whole setup weights maybe 12 lbs. I have a Nils that I love but after using this setup the only time I use the Nils is if I'm taking the wife out for night time crappies, she likes a 8 inch hole.

[hayseed]

I also have a Milwaukee fuel 18 volt with an eight inch Nils convertible head. Really love the way it cuts and it's durability. Very little effort to cut many holes in a day. Have yet to run a battery dry, but will continue to try it. Plus I also got a great drill which I use extensively.

[Northlander]

Check out the new Augers at the Ice Shows this year. Rumor has it that Strikemaster may be coming out with a new Lithium Ion battery operated Auger.

[pushbutton]

JSK pretty much spelled it out. Also know people who like the drill attachments, if that would work for you, depends the style in which you fish. Have used all three of the non drills, and would like JSK, give the nod to Gator if they had a more local service option, had the cash, or was more handy at diagnosing or fixing things with workable parts. If you ONLY sit in a wheelhouse, the Big Volt is truly a beast. If you fish a little in and out the ion, is a good tweaner option. Would be great to see Strikmaster get back in the portable electric game, they pioneered it after all....more competition helps with innovations and prices lower for us.

[ClownColor]

I agree with "don't get the strike master Electra later". Worst auger on the market.

When considering any electric, figure out how you fish. If you're drilling more than 20 plus holes, go gas. Yes- there are some electric that'll drill up to 50...but have fun hole hoping come late season. Also, if you are only owning one auger, I'd go gas. I see the electrics as a "second" auger only.

[Bureaucrat]

I bought an Ion last year. I'm very pleased with it. As mentioned, it has two big limitations, and a third small one: Limited amount of drilling, and you have to mind the battery temp. The small one is that when you're drilling in very deep ice (30"+) don't try to drill it all at once. It'll put excessive stress on the motor to push all those shavings up. I raise mine up about once for each foot of ice. It keeps the extra load off.

That aside, It's only 21lbs. You can drill multiple holes and not even start puffing. When you're done, you can lug it back to the truck without passing out. When you're fishing 6-10 inches of ice, you can get a ton of holes drilled on one battery.

We also use it as a backup auger, or a search auger. When we want to run around and search depths and check for fish, we can have a hole drilled before the gas auger even starts.

I picked up an extra battery from Cabelas. On a hard core day of fishing, I can get it done with two batteries. They will recharge in about two and a half hours.

It's great for staying light, portable, and gas free when you want to run and gun on early ice.

[WalleyeVision]

I've had an Ice Gator for the past 3 seasons and love it. I've never tried the Big Volt, but I have a buddy that has an ION. The Ice Gator has a lot more power and can do a lot more holes than the ION. I think the ION is a little newer to the market, so they may have a better product this year. The ION seemed like it was a little lighter than my Ice Gator, but both are lighter than most gas augers.

[Mid-Lake Rock]

Check out the new Augers at the Ice Shows this year. Rumor has it that Strikemaster may be coming out with a new Lithium Ion battery operated Auger.

The Ice Force catalog is out and they have the Strikemaster lithium on the second or third page.

[JSK76]

I just did some looking and all I could find from SM was a lithium ion 10 amp battery for 150.00. I guess you could put this in a Electra and call it a lithium powered auger or am I missing something? Looked on SM site and the 2014 ice force catalog.

[Crigger]

http://usa.rapala.com/catalog/2015/iceforce/#20

not sure if the link will work but here is the sm auger

[Stick in Mud]

I agree with "don't get the strike master Electra later". Worst auger on the market.

+7 (or whatever the count is at)

We have an older version of the Strikemaster, which we only use for opening the holes in the permanent, and we *might* be able to get through six holes depending on ice thickness.

[B-man715]

Here is my quick summary from 25 years of ice fishing experience with several augers.

If you like a work out, buy a hand auger.

If you drill a pile of holes outside, go gas.

If you drill some holes inside, some outside, go with the Ion.

If you drill strictly inside, go with the Ion or Big volt.

If you drill a pile of holes outside and some inside, and have a bigger ice fishing budget, go with the gator.

If you like to drill four holes, and drill the fifth one half way down, get the Electra..........

Propane is another option for everything, but some guys still don't care for the fumes inside.

For myself, I am pretty much a wheel house/ tip up guy come mid-winter, and the Ion suits my needs perfectly. Early ice I can drill more holes than I want with it; and by the time late ice hits I get the river bug and rarely ice fish.

Two seasons on the Ion and it still cuts flawlessly with the original battery and original set of blades.

I still have my gas auger in the back of the truck all winter just in case I trash the blades on a rock pile or forget to charge the battery. Still haven't "had" to use it, but I drill a couple dozen holes with it every winter to run some gas through the carb

Even before the Ion, I've almost always carried two augers. Between the blades, recoil, fuel, plug, carb etc, there are just too many dumb things that can happen and cut a trip short, or make you sheepishly ask a stranger to borrow their auger

[JSK76]

Bman you hit the nail on the head with the first part of your post. Short, very accurate and to the point.

It should be emailed to all sporting good stores that sell augers! I like it. Save it on your computer because you know it's going to be brought up again and again.

[Redlineracer12]

I think you guys are maybe being a little harsh on the Electra... I have one and it has been good to me. I can always get the 6 holes in the wheelhouse drilled and I usually will go an punch a few for tip-ups too. The only nuisance is with the binding at the bottom of the hole. Unlike the ION a spare/replacement battery is just a run of the mill 12V battery that is cheap and easily available. You also have the option to run it off your truck/wheeler battery. They are not as light as an ION and probably won't get you as many holes, but they are 8" and with the lazer blade they cut pretty fast.

That said I bought a new gas auger last year because I wanted a 10" hole for those super cold nights where the 8" became a 6" by morning. Still will keep the electra around for a backup that has always "just worked".

[Hawg]

Sorry Redline, I have a good friend with an Electra and I don't think we're harsh enough on them. It's a shame that ION and now Strikemaster will always be compared and prejudged by them.

[BLACKJACK]

I have an Electra and its junk!!! So very disapointed in Stikemaster!! I have a 15 year old gas SM thats a starting and cutting machine but this thing is junk!! I bought it for in the wheel house - no fumes but the biggest problem is that small battery and that catching at the bottom of the hole, it just about jerks your arms off. I've gotten to the point where I hook it up to an external battery right off the bat, the extra juice seems to help.

Also since it has limited capacity by itself, if you want to drill a bunch of holes outside you're screwed. Consequently I end up taking two augers with me, which I hate since they take up so much room in the back of the truck. I will probably upgrade to the ION (with a spare battery) this fall. Not going to trust SM again (unless they have a trade-in option), plus I hate buying any product the first year it comes out.

Any votes for a propane auger inside a fish house?? If its not being mixed with oil, the fumes would probably not be bad, nothing 10 minutes of open door wouldn't cure. And with propane you could drill as many holes as you want outside the house, best of both worlds.

Or are there any 4-stroke augers that wouldn't smell up a house??

[jerkbait]

Strikemaster Lite is a 4 stroke and been around for a long time. A friend has 1 and has used it in my house. Big difference over a 2 stroke. I have the electra and it works for me in my perm. I have 6 holes and on LOTW I can do all 6 all season long. I also remember something about the twin blades catching and thought it was something to do with the blades. What I did though was take the chipper blade off my gas, put that on the electra and put the twin blade on my gas.

[JoeMX1825]

for those who complain about the ION extra battery cost, nearly all retailers clearance them in the spring...I've seen them for as low as $90 before. Yes, it's still $90, but alot less of a sting than $150 that's always quoted online. For me it's all about weight savings and not having to deal with gas/oil...