Ice augers - Which one?

[Coach]

I am in the market to buy a new Auger but I have not had to buy one for over 15 years. Which brands are the most reliable? Would you consider electric? Any and all comment are appreciated. Looking forward to the ice.

[BIG DS]

If quiet is your thing the Strikemaster Strikelight is the key. It is a 4 stroke and is as quiet as an electric. If speed is your thing, Nilsmaster is the only way to go. beyond those two choices it is a matter of color.

[Cliff Wagenbach]

I vote for Nils Master!

Quiet, light, and cuts like crazy!! And available on this site!

Cliff

[harvey lee]

I have owned many different brand auger and the lightest and fastest cutting auger I have ever used is a Nils. This baby cuts like a hot knife through butter. Long auger shaft should keep you from having to buy an extension as others might need. When running and gunning on the ice, the Nils is a very, very good auger. One should have an extra cutting head as you never know when you may dull one.

Check them out on the Fishing Minnesota store here.

http://www.fishingminnesota.com/sportgood.html

[prov1900]

Did Nils always sell just the hand auger? I noticed it this year for the first time. I thought they only sold the gas with the hand extension. I really need just the hand auger as I already have a SM Lazer. With the projected lack of ice around here, I can get by for awhile without the gas one. What do you guys recommend for the hand auger? 6 or 8?

[BTrauma1]

Yes, this is a Ford vs. Chevy debate.

[CSP88]

Quote:

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I am in the market to buy a new Auger but I have not had to buy one for over 15 years. Which brands are the most reliable? Would you consider electric? Any and all comment are appreciated. Looking forward to the ice.

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My vote would be for the StrikeMaster Strike Lite, no mixing oil & gas and extremely light which is a godsend if you like to drill lots of holes.

Chad

[Northlander]

I would say if you want the best auger out there get a Nils. Nothing wrong with the blades. Just dont bang them on the ice or drill into sand/dirt. Just like any shaver blade.

If you dont want to spend that type money and drill holes on rivers or waters that tend to have dirt/sand in the ice go with a good chipper blade auger. Jiffy makes the best of those.

No matter what auger you buy take care of the blades and they will take care of you.

[Orlip]

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Knowing Nils Master sponsors this site, I can accept the number of endorsments. But please read the post...reliable blades. Only one auger offers continous performing blades; Jiffy. Chipper blades cut forever and never disappoint. And if you want quality from your products, look at Jiffy. Yes, this is a Ford vs. Chevy debate. But in my opinion, it is Ford (Strikemaster) vs. Catepillar (Jiffy)

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What happened to Chevy????

[BIG DS]

I guess the only other true concerns are the amount of money you want to spend and maybe hole size. Eskimo has the lowest price. Next would be reconditioned Strikemasters, they do carry the same warranty as a new one. New Strikemasters and Jiffy's are priced the same and right in the middle. Nils is the highest dollar auger out there. Eskimo, Strikemaster, and Jiffy have 9" and 10" offerings and Nils are limited to 7" and 8" if memory serves. Anyway, hope all this feedback helps.

[wishing for walleyes]

I have a jiffy legend lightning stealth with ice d`armor 2 hp 9 inch hole and love it.I have an old strikemaster magnum and use it to drill holes in the ground and must say it is built to last.Last week i drilled 22 holes and 18 of them had 2 inch parking lot rock about 1 foot down in them and the auger held up great.wears the blade off,but its alot better then digging with a hand auger.

[BIG DS]

One other thing, when it comes to reliability, they all have thier pros and cons. Depending on where you live, Strikemaster is right in Big Lake and are extremely gratious to there walk in customers as many people on this sight can tell you. Most of the 2hp and 3hp augers use Techumseh engines. The only difference is the gearbox and clutch. But believe me, gearboxes and clutches rarely go out. I have been repairing these things for years, and a tune-up and a sharp blade is about all I have ever done no matter what brand or what age.

[Duffman]

prov1900....

I've had an 8" Nils hand auger for about 4 years now, hands down the nicest hand auger out there. My power auger is also a Strikemaster, but the last couple of winters I've used the Nils quite a bit more than the SM. That is unless it's 2ft or more of ice or I'm going to be popping a lot of holes. I can only imagine how quick the Nils would be with a powerhead on it, cause it's super quick when only using your hands. If you can get by by only using a 6", you will be amazed how easy it is to get through 12" of ice. I'm guessing I could do it in less than 15 seconds easy.

I've seen an experienced Nils hand auger (6") user beat a power auger (8") in a three hole contest (18" of ice), no talk, that sold me on it. 6" or 8" is up to you, the only reason I went 8" is because I chase lakers or big gators on occasion.

[prov1900]

Thanks Duffman!! That was what I was wanting to hear. I haven't used a hand auger since I was a kid. It was the old shovel head design. Back then, we always seemed to have 24" of ice in Iowa, so that was a workout.

[JRFISHBAIT]

One of the nice things about a Nils is you get both a hand auger and a power auger in one. The bit for a power auger is the same as the bit for a hand auger. With your power auger, you get the handle for the hand auger. Just remove the power head. Best of both worlds!

[The Yeti]

Jiffy..

[prov1900]

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One of the nice things about a Nils is you get both a hand auger and a power auger in one.

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That was my original question. Last year, I noticed that you couldn't buy just the hand auger. This year, per this HSOforum, I see you can buy just the hand auger. I will be ordering one for myself soon, say...for post-Thanksgiving??

[793bob]

does this years jiffy 2hp auger have a primer button on it.i'm thinking of either getting the 2hp or the 3hp jiffy which is easier to start .

[boatfixer]

I got my Dad a 2hp Jiffy stealth for Christmas 2 years ago. He has had 2 open hearts, and a bad set of knees. He has no problem with weight, speed, or starting. Darn good auger. Absolutely nothing against the Nils or SM. I'm know they are excellent as well.

[tipup]

Just bought a new jiffy stealth STX it does not have a primer button but it does have a compression release button for starting. Have not started mine yet but will let you know how it does with this feature

[Surface Tension]

They've been using Nils hand augers in Finland for years.

I've used just about every auger(hand and power)there is.

They all drill holes in the ice. When the ice gets thick and you need holes any power auger is better then a hand auger. Just like going to work, any ride is better then walking.

I have a Nils power auger. I also have a StrikeMaster with a 8" chipper blade. They both start and run great. I maintain and keep them in top working order. Having drilled more holes by hand then most, I'm grateful to have a power auger. They both make holes in the ice.

Guess which auger I take fishing. Why is that.

Just like the power auger over the hand auger, I can drill more holes with less effort. Same goes for the Nils, I can drill more holes with less effort then I can with my StrikeMaster. On top of that it just feels better then any other auger. I like using it. Hey, I'd get a sense of satisfaction when hand drilling into 30" of ice but really didn't like doing it. Drilling with the Nils isn't work, its more like play. I guess how fast it cuts and doing so without much effort is part of that fun.

Keep an auger maintained and it'll cut holes for you.

Like cars, some are funner to drive but they all get you there. Spare blades, no matter what brand auger you have a spare set of blades is a must.

[mhjohns]

I completely agree that maintaining your auger is more important then anything else, no matter what auger is purchased.

When people complain about augers not starting or not cutting good most of the time its opperator error. They aren't designed to not start good. They aren't designed to not cut ice.

If you don't prepare the engine to be stored, it probably won't start when you take it out.

If you use cheap oil, it might run, but how long will it last and how will it effect it when then environmental conditions get extreme?

If you use the auger to drill post holes in the summer or dirty ice that has sand on it from vehicles driving over it, you'll have better luck with a shovel.

Some augers cut fast some cut slower, some have 4-stoke engines and some have 2. They are all designed to cut ice and the owner is more of a factor in how well that happens.

[Corey Bechtold]

Coach, this is my opinion on Ice Augers.

I live in Minnesota and truely believe that Strikemaster makes the best augers. I have a MagIII that is 8 years old and almost 5 years ago I put the Lazer bit on instead of the chipper blade. It starts great (I tried it out last week) and cuts through the Ice like a hot knife through butter. If there is ever a need for service of parts the customer service that Strikemaster has is second to none. I haven't had to have any service on my auger but last year I put a clear gas tank on so I could see how much gas I had in the tank. I had some gaskets fall off and had to call them and they walked me through every step.

There are arguements for every auger brand but for me it is only Strikemaster.

One other note is their bits clean out the holes very well. Less slush to clean out means more time fishing.

Let me know if you have any other questions and I'd be happy to help you out.

Good fishing,

Corey Bechtold

[email protected]

[harvey lee]

I honestly agree with Frank 100%. You can cut holes in the ice using ba Nils with almost NO effort on your part. One Awesome auger all the way around.

You do not push down at all with a Nils, just hold on and watch it go through the ice.

[cold one sd]

My auger is well maintained and I have no problems with it starting and cutting holes. If I drill a hole and decide to clean the slush out, I can lay it on the ice and it stays running. When I bought it, the bit would turn anytime it was running. I talked to the dealer and he said that some of the 2 hp models do this and it could take some time for the clutch to break in and work properly. Since he works on them I thought he knew what he was talking about. Last winter was my fourth or fifth season with this auger and the clutch still didn't work at all. I was realy tired of starting it and holding it up off of the ice until it was warmed up. I called the manufacturer and told them of the problem and they sent me a return authorization number and UPS shipping label. I sent the auger in and when I got it back the clutch was working great and the engine had been adjusted on their dyno and runs like a car. I think that was pretty great customer service considering the auger had been out of warranty for about than three or four years.