Strikemaster 4 Stroke Gas Auger

[NewPanfisher]

I Just purchased the new strikemaster strike lite 4 stroke 8" gas auger. I took it out and have only drilled 6 holes through about 10" of ice, and I'm very disapointed in the performance of the this auger. It seems to not drill very good and seems to drill slow as the the ice seems to look more like powdered snow than ice chips. I do believe that I could drill quicker with my hand Lazer 5" auger. Has anyone else had similar problems with the new 4 stroke auger? I'm Thinking maybe I should have purchased the 2 stroke Lazer model instead, but when I researched them there was only 5 rpm's difference between the two. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[BIG DS]

Keep in mind that the bit does not turn the same RPM as what you may be used to. The Lazer blades sould leave ice that looks more like it is shaved than chipped. Give it time to break in, if it still seems to not cut well, there is a chance, though slight, that the blades are either dull or out of pitch. Under ideal conditions, it will never drill a hole as fast as the Lazer Mag or the Jiffy. That is the small sacrifice that you make to have the quiet, light, almost smokeless four stroke.

[fadal]

I love my strikemaster 4 stroke I augered about 40 holes today without hardly noticing it , ice was about 20 inches. I know I would be whinning if I would have just done 10 holes with my jiffy. Best ice fishing tool I own is my strikemaster lite

[zamboni]

I just got one today as well. I drilled 4 holes with it and am very happy with it. My buddy and I had "looky-lous" everywhere when it was drilling, it was sooooo quiet. One thing I noticed when I got it home and actually read the instruction manual, is that you have to let it idle 1-2 minutes before starting to drill your holes, maybe that was the problem you had, I don't know.

[buzbunni]

I'm no wrench, but from reading others post's on FM, I believe most augers need a break in period before the compression settles into optimum performance.

[Tony Holland]

Love mine.....i will race you with a hand auger....

[McGurk]

5" auger= 19.6 square inches of ice drilled

8" auger= 50.2 square inches of ice drilled

I think I can drill a 5" faster by hand than an 8"; I'm drilling 2/5ths the ice! Give it a while, break the motor in, drill a bunch more holes, then borrow a 2 stroke and see if there is still a difference.

[NewPanfisher]

Thanks everyone for your replys, I contacted Strikemaster over this matter and they told me that a bunch of augers were shipped out from the factory with the blades mounted upside down, which resulted in poor cutting. I have since flipped the blades over and WOW!!! what a difference it makes. To anyone else who may experience this similar problem be sure to check your blades and make sure you can see the writing on the top side of the blades when looking down at them. Thanks Again!!!