Propane Auger? It's coming so says the Rumor Mill.......

[stumper]

According to the Jiffy rep that was there, he said no need.  There were two other guys standing there and looked at eachother confused too. 

I hope I run into that rep at The "show" and get that line. It would be the difference between be buying one or not if I was in the market. If they are dumb enough to not recomend warming that motor up before ripping holes,they have no buisness reping for Jiffy.

[Skipper]

Did the Jiffy rep mention his name? What did he look like?

Always warm everything up. Pistons, rings, and cylinders expand at different rates, give them a chance to catch up with each other. Warming it up may not be necessary, but neither are premium spark plugs, non ethanol gas, and good synthetic oil. We all know how much of a difference these things can make in performance and reliability in any small engine.

Who is making these engines? Is it another Jiffy engineered -overseas build, or is it an engine from another manufacturer?

[jasond37]

Did the Jiffy rep mention his name? What did he look like?

Always warm everything up. Pistons, rings, and cylinders expand at different rates, give them a chance to catch up with each other. Warming it up may not be necessary, but neither are premium spark plugs, non ethanol gas, and good synthetic oil. We all know how much of a difference these things can make in performance and reliability in any small engine.

Who is making these engines? Is it another Jiffy engineered -overseas build, or is it an engine from another manufacturer?

I didn't catch his name.  He had on the white collared button up Jiffy shirt on.  I was looking at the wheeler they had decked out, which was pretty neat by the way.  The two guys that were standing there grabbed it off the stand, and I heard the rep say 'powered by propane', which caught my attention (I first heard of it here, didn't think it was real).  He started it up, went right to full throttle, hit the off switch and a guy said something about letting it warm up.  The rep said that the way the motor was designed, no need to let it warm up.  Just start it, and go.  The two guys looked at eachother in confusion and said that would be nice, and the rep agreed, saying it would save time.  I didn't believe it either, but that's what he said.

[oyler]

There were 2 jiffy reps there, Brent Tommerdahl and Ben Ekrem.  It was probably Brent that showed you the auger.  He was the one that brought the trailer with the augers and the wheeler.  I must admit, that after running the pro4, even though Im a Strikemaster guy, I am impressed with that auger. 

[Ekruger01]

i was there when he unloaded the trailer so i helped set up the tent, it was the first auger i asked about when i walked over and he let me grab and carry the powerhead out, weight wise its the same as any other power auger. im also wondering why there is no need to warm it up, but he let that thing warm up early in the morning when he got there.......but when he brought his wheeler out it must have died ten or twelve times when he started it and tried to move it, it needed to warm up lol. so maybe he just likes replacing equipment?

Ek

Jason i was also there wondering around we should have taken a shanty roll call!

[dkfry]

Any pictures of the powerhead at all?

Apparently Jiffy does not own nor have access to a digital camera. Reeds has these augers on their site to purchase but there are no pics or info on Jiffy's or Reeds site.

[oyler]

I have some, I will post when I get home.

[Skipper]

Oh boy... Jiffy better get going on the marketing. I am going to have to buy something here, my old Jiffy is on death's door. If it wont start in the fall, I am done with it.

[stumper]

For those with Facebook...

http://www.facebook.com/?ref=home#!/album.php?aid=248573&id=50541187339

[surflizard]

Great photos, thanks for posting them ! Sure wish we had ice gear promotions like that around here ! 

[icefshninnh]

there are a few places in new hampshire selling lawn mowers that run on the 1 lb bottles cant keep lp stove or lantern running if left out in cold to long hope every ones working on a way to keep the propane flowin at sub zero temps

[Mainehazmt]

as long as it is propane there shouldnt be too much of a problem  vaporises down to -40   it is butane that has issues   and the mixed types of propane / butane you have to worry about

[oyler]

Here is a pic of Jiffy staffer Ben Ekrem and the Pro4.  I thought I had a close up pic of the powerhead, but I guess not.

[Mainehazmt]

Personally I think the propane is the way to go for those that want an internal combustion auger  with the crappy gas (e10  e 85 ect )being sold today   less cleaning is nessisary and consistancy in the fuels   now you dont have to worry about the gas going bad  mixing it wrong ect....   but like I said before here comes the ol refilling propane tank thread!   BTW  will ya have to put a filter in line with it  like the buddy heaters   lol

[surflizard]

Good job oyler, you didn't happen to find out who makes the motor did ya ?

[oyler]

No Surf, I didn't...  Between being at our table, and looking at all of the other new products, I forgot to do a lot of things I was planning on.  I'm not sure how many of you guys have been to Thorne Brothers, but what an amzing store!! They have by far the largest selection of ice fishing gear I have ever seen in person, and its only September, I can't imagine what it will look like in January.

[surflizard]

Can't say I blame ya Oyler, looking at the photos, I'd say there was a lot to take in !    That Tiposaurus rex, is that a novelty, or are they for sale ?

[oyler]

I built it a couple weeks ago as a novelty, It 100% functional, probably just not practical  if you go to the Rise and Shine South Dakota thread, I have the back story on it.

[jasond37]

I think the Pro4 is a good idea, I hope it catches on for them.  I think it sounds good too, doesn't give you that 2 cycle cologne either.  I'd like to give one a try or see one in use this winter, we'll really see what they are made of.  He was saying it has more power/torque than the standard gas augers too.

[Ben Ekrem]

OK Guys I will try to answer a few questions about the Jiffy Pro 4.
First of all like all small engines they do need some warm up time when on the ice. This engine is unique in the fact that it starts different, there is no power switch to turn on it is always on. There are no choke or primer buttons to mess around with so to start it just give the starter handle a short pull like on a chain saw and it starts right up. now when on the ice you will want to let it warm up to get full performance out of it that will take only a minute or so depending on ambient temps.

Who makes this engine I have not been told yet. But rest assured from what i saw it is jiffy enginered all the way.

I will recommend this auger to anyone and will be doing demos on the ice in South Dakota and Iowa this winter so if you see me and want to give it a try  Come on over. I am easy to find with Cold Snap Outdoors on my jacket and shack.

See Ya on the Ice.. only 60 more days

[DannyBoy09]

If there is no switch how do you shut it off?

[stumper]

If there is no switch how do you shut it off?

Its a Jiffy. it will just die,LOL.Just kidding.....Im betting from the pics it has a fuel shut off that kills the motor. If im right, Will this cause a lean condition while it runs out of fuel or does it die imidiatly at the time fuel preasure is taken away?

[IcePro]

I would like to address some of the questions that have been raised by people attending the Fish House Modification at Thorne Brothers and others that have questions by comments people have made.

Questions / Answers
The Pro 4 being propane there is:
   -No Primer
   -No Choke
   -No Flooding
   -No Smoke
   -Quit operation
   -Positive On Switch; to turn the unit off hold the switch to off position until the engine quits.  Once you let go of the switch it goes back to the ON position.  This feature will also be on Jiffy's 2-cycle units as well.
   -4 Stoke engine which uses six ounces 0W40 Synthetic Oil in the crank case.  Jiffy designed the engine with two splash paddles to insure proper lubrication.

Warm up time on the auger, I have confirmed with the engineers from Jiffy and 30 – 60 seconds all is needed.  The way the engine is designed, being a 4 stroke and running on propane this is all the time that it is needed, if it makes you more comfortable run it longer to warm it up.

I did start the propane unit up right away to let it run, not to warm it up to see if I had propane in the tank and to show how quit the unit ran.

YES I did have to start the wheeler several times.  The wheeler came from a trade show and all the gas had to be removed from the gas tank, there was barely any gas in the tank, this is why I did not let it warm up.  No I do not like replacing equipment.

Jiffy does have a digital camera and dealers have been sent an art CD. If you go to Marine Generals website they have a picture posted, Jiffy's website should be updated around October 1st.  Thanks for those that have posted pictures.

Since the unit runs on one pound cylinders the propane is much cleaner than what comes from bulk tanks, no need for a filter.

The propane unit will run a good hour under load; the ice thickness and drill size will determine the number of holes.

The performance of the propane auger has been tested -20 degrees with no issues.  The unit uses a high pressure regulator unlike your heaters that use a low pressure regulator.   Propane will not vaporize when it gets below -40 degrees, so if you are brave enough to endure those temperatures dress warm since your propane heater will not be working either .  If you are experiencing any poor performance replace the bottle with a bottle that was stored in a warmer environment.

Ekruger01
   I would like to thank you for helping set up the tent; I was looking for you later in the day so I could have personally thanked you and give you a token of my appreciation.

I hope this has answered the questions that have been asked, I will do my best to answer any questions that you might have. 

[Skipper]

So this is a JIFFY engine, built to spec for an auger and not an engine used for other power tools?

I am from the minority here, I do not like the old 2hp tec engines at all. I understand also that the EPA has been making it very difficult to manufacture a small engine that meets requirements. I am happy to see that Jiffy is stepping around the EPA and giving another approach a shot. I have been very unimpressed with most of the small gasoline engines on the market for quite some time. Finding fuel they will agree with has become nearly impossible.

I know I will see Brent Tommerdahl at the ice show, maybe I will get to play with one in the loading dock!

There is a reason my lantern and heater are propane and not white gas. I hate messing with gas, one spill can wreck hundreds of dollars worth of gear in the blink of an eye.

I need an auger, mine is shot. Lets see what I buy! I was 100% sure it was going to be a Nils/Tanaka because I was unimpressed with the Jiffy and Solo offerings. We have a new entry....

[jasond37]

Ben and IcePro, thanks for clearing that up.  Perhaps I mis-heard about the no warm up time, sorry for my confusion, I thought that is what was said.  Still, 30 seconds is nothing.

[FISHFORPIKE]

I have to admit, that if this offering from Jiffy was available at this time last year; I would have at least considered it in competition for the IceGator that I purchased.  My prime goal was to get gasoline out of the picture, as far as augers go.  I feel I have ruined more than one day of fishing with a small gasoline spill.  The new propane deal is indeed a great improvement over other fuels.  Time will tell , as far as the machine being reliable and up to "standards".  AND it "won't be long" before the reviews begin rolling in.
I think you should be in on the testing Skipper.

[pikeking]

Here is what I have found about the Propane auger by Jiffy... 499.95 For the PRO 4, 8" STX with free ground shipping from Glen's Army Navy. They have them in stock!!!
 
With over two years of testing and planning Jiffy's New Propane Powered Pro 4 Ice Auger is finally ready for prime time.  Powered by just one 1 lb propane tank the 49cc 4 stroke Pro 4 has been run up to 1 hour.  Never worry about choking, priming, or a smoke filled ice house ever again.  Backed by a 1 year warranty on the engine and a two year warranty on the transmission, there is no risk in buying the newest auger on the market. 
 
   

   
 Features

•4 Stroke 49CC Engine
•Clean-No Gas on Hands
•No Smoke
•No Choke
•No Prime
•No Flooding
•Easy to Start in Cold Weather
•Quiet
•Dependable & Powerful
•Low Maintenance
•HTT Transmission
•Stealth STX Blades feature a 3 Year Warranty
•E-Z Connect Collar
•Professional Grade 8" Ice Driill
 

[icefshninnh]

awe come on gus at the epa musnt have been on a big lake like winni when the smell of exhaust is so thick you can tase it and eyes almost sting dont think its all the power augers doing that you run it makes holes and your done its the planes trucks runing all day cars and sleds out there on the ice cant see a small jiffy being the worry of epa tell them to jump on old lawn mowers that run for hours not min

[IcePro]

Skipper

Since it is propane I will let you run it on the show floor at the ice show.

[icefshninnh]

ice show where and when please