Auger kills at bottom of ice

[zeusaric]

I bought a used Jiffy 3hp 8 inch auger. My buddy bought it new at the end of last season and used it only 4 days last year. When I bought it this year, it already had gas in it, I'm assuming it's from last year.

Anyway, it seems to run fine, however I get to the bottom of the ice, it quits on me. Am I doing something wrong? Is the gas\mixture bad? Is the blade dull?

Any\all suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

[Guest]

Will it idle warm?

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"Ed on the Red"
Backwater Guiding Service
[email protected]
fishingminnesota.com/ed-on-the-red/

[huskminn]

I have a 2 HP Strikemaster 8" and I had similar problems last year with mine. I also had old gas in the tank. Mine would sometimes die while idling.

I purged the gas from everything, including the fuel line. I put in fresh gas, cleaned the plug (it was dirty) and the thing ran much better.

However, the auger would still bog down when it reached the bottom of the ice and I had a heck of a time "punching through". This may have been why I was having kill problems at the same point before.

I noticed that I had a habit of "pushing" the auger down while drilling. I tried just holding the auger in place and letting the weight of the auger do the pushing. I no longer would get bogged down or hung up on that last inch of ice. Something about putting that weight on the auger would cause it to dig into the ice.

Don't know if my info will help you, but just putting it out there. Good luck.

[Guest]

Is it catching on the ice before it kills or is it just killing?

[Roop-Dogg]

something else you might try. when you are drilling, and before you get to the bottom, lift your auger to clear the shavings/chips from the hole. do this a couple of times on the way down and your auger will cut much easier.

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Roop

[zeusaric]

Thanks for the replies guys, I'll give the suggestions a shot tomorrow.

Eddy and Scott, I let the engine warm up for a minute or more so that it will idle b4 I start drilling. Everything will be going smoothly, cutin a nice clean hole and then it starts to die when I reach the bottom. I try to "save" it by lifting, increasing gas, decreasing gas, nothing has seemed to work. After it kills I start it right up and then go back, usually at a little higher RPM since i'm not exactly happy, and get through. I'll start the 2nd hole, and it'll happen again when I get to the bottom of the 2nd hole.

I'll empty out the gas tonight and see how that goes for tomorrow.

Thanks for your help\advice.

[Matt D]

zeusaric,

I saw the thread topic and immediately knew it came from Jiffy owner. They all hang up a bit on the "punch-through". However, with it killing at that point, I think your problem is a little worse. A friend of mine runs a small engine shop and word has it he's been keeping plenty busy lately. Seems the shelf-life of gas these days is really short (~ 1 month give or take). Unless the fuel left in the tank from last year had stabilizer in it, that's probably the source of the problem. Using fresh gas may or may not solve it. With gas sitting in it that long, you may have gotten some varnish built up in the carb. I haven't looked at the layout on Jiffy's all that close, but if fresh gas doesn't solve the problem, you might see if you can shoot some carb cleaner in to clear it up a bit. I had to do the same thing on two separate small engines of mine last summer. One had varnished up so bad the idle jet was completely clogged. Good luck.

[Guest]

If the engine is running properly except for when the center point pops through and the main blade catches full, then I would say it is in need of a touch up on the main cutting edge.

As the center point punches through the main cutting edge gets a lot to chew all at once. This can really pull hard on the engine, although usually this will catch, not kill the engine dead. Ease up on the last 2" of ice so the blade can chew it up in a more metered fashion.

If a auger will not advance and spins more then it cuts, it is a dull or bent centering point. For some name brand power augers this may be due to ice build up on the center point.

Low power is another deal. Check your plug, hell replace it, they are cheap, just keep the old one for a spare.

I always run Premium High Octane gas/oil mix treated with a dab of Sea-Foam, and a douche of Sta-Bil, always-always treat your fuel.

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"Ed on the Red"
Backwater Guiding Service
[email protected]
fishingminnesota.com/ed-on-the-red/

[minneman]

Loosen the vent screw on the gas cap?

[MnSportsman]

I think Backwater Eddy nailed that one right on the head, with that last post. Get a new blade,or set of blades. It's sure to help, & you'll eventually need a new set anyway. If you already have a new blade(s) on it, the problem may still be as B.Eddy said. The point may be part of the problem.
"Dress" it up a little with a file.
This trouble will only get worse if you don't
keep the cutting edges sharp. The cetrifugal clutch parts(shoes/springs/drum), & main drive bearing also, can be damaged(Burnt).
The price to fix these is relatively inexpensive,even more so if ya do the repairs yourself. But putting on sharp blades & dressing the point is fast & easy, & you're gonna have ta do it sooner or later anyway.
Good luck!

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Good Luck & Watch your bobber!
MnSportsman
Proud to be a member in good standing, of the
"Church of the Divine Wilderness"!

[zeusaric]

Thanks for all your posts\ideas, I really appreciate it. I emptied and put in new gas for this weekend, still had some problems though. In talking with the previous owner, the gas was left in all year. I'll have the carb cleaned out, put in a new plug, and start using higher octane gas.

I can't imagine the blade being dull yet, but I'll give that a shot as well.

Thanks for you help.