Best electric auger.

[PurpleFloyd]

So with a lot of new electric augers on the market, which would you consider to be the best? I have been considering putting my gas Eskimo on mothballs and getting an electric. Out of all of them the Clam looks like a good option. Anyone else have experience with the newest models 

[tacklejunkie]

6 hours ago, PurpleFloyd said:

So with a lot of new electric augers on the market, which would you consider to be the best? I have been considering putting my gas Eskimo on mothballs and getting an electric. Out of all of them the Clam looks like a good option. Anyone else have experience with the newest models 

 

Strikemaster 40v.

 

My son owns one and I sold my propane and use his and it's slick

[bobbymalone]

I'm a huge fan of my kdrill.  It's also nice that I have a sweet milwaukee drill year round.  It's probably overkill for my general homeowner use, but not complaining.   A lot easier to justify the price factoring that in rather than an another expensive toy that I use for a few months a year.

 

If you already have the drill, it's a no brainer.

[Wanderer]

14 hours ago, PurpleFloyd said:

So with a lot of new electric augers on the market, which would you consider to be the best? I have been considering putting my gas Eskimo on mothballs and getting an electric. Out of all of them the Clam looks like a good option. Anyone else have experience with the newest models 

Whats your main fishing style?  Panfish or game fish?  Hard house or portable/bare ice?  Move a lot or a little?  Drive out, walk, travel by sled or wheeler?  With so many options one will probably be better for you than it might be for another.

 

Are you thinking this Clam auger?

[leech~~]

Interestingly when I was in D-Rock picking up a few things for the gas auger.  The gal working there told me 3 guys that fish way up north just came in and all bought new gas augers. They said they were done with electric augers because they just couldn't afford going so far to fish and not have a reliable auger that couldn't make it through 2-3 feet of ice and would die in the cold weather on a long weekend.  Braaap, Braaap!    

[Wanderer]

Nothing is perfect for everything.

[bobbymalone]

26 minutes ago, leech~~ said:

 Braaap, Braaap!    

 

And the rest of the time, they are gonna be lugging around 30lbs of jiffy and stinking like two stroke to cut through 8 inches of ice.

 

I keep my old strikemaster around just in case, which does happen.  Not too much though.

[Jim Almquist]

1 hour ago, Wanderer said:

Nothing is perfect for everything.

 

 

I like to think that my Nils is pretty close. I have 6" and 8" and the Tanaka motor when the ice gets thick. I use my 20v Dewalt for early and late ice.

[Wanderer]

So, essentially you still have two augers though.  Gas and electric.

 

2 power heads and two bits.  Or even 4 with mix and match possibilities.

 

I do agree on the Nils being fantastic by the way.  

[leech~~]

1 hour ago, bobbymalone said:

 

And the rest of the time, they are gonna be lugging around 30lbs of jiffy and stinking like two stroke to cut through 8 inches of ice.

 

I keep my old strikemaster around just in case, which does happen.  Not too much though.

 

 

Eeeuu, it's heavy and stinky!    

[PurpleFloyd]

11 hours ago, Wanderer said:

Whats your main fishing style?  Panfish or game fish?  Hard house or portable/bare ice?  Move a lot or a little?  Drive out, walk, travel by sled or wheeler?  With so many options one will probably be better for you than it might be for another.

 

Are you thinking this Clam auger?

My fishing style? Probably best described as older and fatter every year and possibly looking to get something that keeps me on the right side of the ground.

 

honestly i don’t  drill tons of holes and there are times that I may go a while without using it so not having to worry about gas, cleaning jets, carbs etc seems like a good idea. And if it's lighter and doesn’t need pull starting that’s better yet.  

[Wanderer]

8 inch bit of your choice (k drill is lightest) and a Milwaukee 18v brushless drill.

 

Done.

[leech~~]

1 hour ago, PurpleFloyd said:

My fishing style? Probably best described as older and fatter every year and possibly looking to get something that keeps me on the right side of the ground.

 

honestly i don’t  drill tons of holes and there are times that I may go a while without using it so not having to worry about gas, cleaning jets, carbs etc seems like a good idea. And if it's lighter and doesn’t need pull starting that’s better yet.  

 

Um, $150+ batteries die from sitting around unused or not charged!  Carb's are cleanable.

[bobberineyes]

Really leaning on doing the same thing,  already have all the batteries might as well get the 1/2 drill to boot. The old model 30 still runs great but it would be nice to have another lighter option for local lakes.

[bobbymalone]

4 hours ago, leech~~ said:

 

Um, $150+ batteries die from sitting around unused or not charged!  Carb's are cleanable.

Yeah we get it leech.... Did you have anything to contribute to the topic here or just trying to get sponsored by Exxon?

[leech~~]

52 minutes ago, bobbymalone said:

Yeah we get it leech.... Did you have anything to contribute to the topic here or just trying to get sponsored by Exxon?

 

[Wanderer]

11 hours ago, leech~~ said:

 

Um, $150+ batteries die from sitting around unused or not charged!  Carb's are cleanable.

In case you haven’t met; Lithium this leech.  Leech this is lithium.  I think this could be the beginning of long friendship.

 

And who couldn’t use a nice 1/2 inch drill with a hammer drill option?

 

But I guess

[PurpleFloyd]

12 hours ago, leech~~ said:

 

Um, $150+ batteries die from sitting around unused or not charged!  Carb's are cleanable.

 

Batteries plus can rebuild batteries. Aren’t most gas auger engines built in China? I believe even my Eskimo that’s almost a decade old has a China sourced engine. Not sure how long you can guarantee parts like gaskets, needles, floats etc will be available for repairs and maintenance. 

[bobbymalone]

8 hours ago, leech~~ said:

 

 

Please no topless auger photos.  We have seen your tatties enough.

[nofishfisherman]

16 hours ago, PurpleFloyd said:

My fishing style? Probably best described as older and fatter every year and possibly looking to get something that keeps me on the right side of the ground.

 

honestly i don’t  drill tons of holes and there are times that I may go a while without using it so not having to worry about gas, cleaning jets, carbs etc seems like a good idea. And if it's lighter and doesn’t need pull starting that’s better yet.  

 

Based on your description I got to agree with those recommending the kdrill with milwaukee M18 fuel drill.   I needed a new cordless drill 2 years ago and also wanted a new auger so it was a no brainer for me to pair the 2 up.  I've got the smaller Kdrill but with the 2 batteries I can easily get 40-50 holes through 12-18 inches of ice no problem.  Thats way more than enough for my purposes.   It also cuts really nice and easy.  My wife was out with me and the kids once and she's never used an auger of any kind and she wanted to give the kdrill a shot.  She was cutting holes with ease and the auger is so light there really isn't any issues with fatigue.  Its also really nice to throw the drill into reverse and clear the hole by pushing the slush down the hole and up under the ice.  No more scooping holes.

 

A smaller advantage but one I still notice is how easy it is to store in the off season.  The drill is always in its spot in my workshop and the auger itself is small and easy to store compared to the bigger units.  If space is an issue and you know it may sit for awhile between uses that advantage becomes more noticeable.  

[leech~~]

2 hours ago, bobbymalone said:

Please no topless auger photos.  We have seen your tatties enough.

 

Dude, I know that's a girl!    

[elkrivermn]

Champion from Harbor Freight is the bomb!!!

[leech~~]

1 hour ago, elkrivermn said:

Champion from Harbor Freight is the bomb!!!

 

I wonder if they still have that?  I was just there the other day and all I saw was gas Earth augers?  

[delcecchi]

18 hours ago, leech~~ said:

 

Um, $150+ batteries die from sitting around unused or not charged!  Carb's are cleanable.

Lithium ion seems much better in that respect...NiCads indeed were unreliable. 

[leech~~]

6 minutes ago, delcecchi said:

Lithium ion seems much better in that respect...NiCads indeed were unreliable. 

 

I think that was already covered above!