Clam Corporation... What I ordered vs what was sent..

[Ice Scratcher]

This has a viable updated solution, which I posted on page 5.. I hope it holds up..

This is what I ordered...





This is what I got...





Besides looking and designed different...

THE HOUSING IS PLASTIC!!! 

Now I have to take it apart because if the gears are plastic it's getting returned in pieces..

Isn't bait and switch illegal?

Feeling ripped off at the moment...

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[Ice Scratcher]

Here is the box it came in..

In English it reads "composite" in French it reads "aluminum"

 



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[Buckshots]

Call them up and throw a fit!

[3300]

giant bummer!

[Ice Scratcher]

The gears appear to be steel, bearings on the auger shaft, bushings on the rest.. For plastic, the housing seems pretty stout...

We'll see how she sails..



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[Ice Scratcher]

I greased it up a little more, and bolted it all up..

On a good note, it's quieter than I expected a gear box would be.. The plastic might be helping keep the noise down..

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[Monticatgeek]

Ice Scratcher,

 I am going to be talking with one of the higher up customer service guys and see if I can get more info on this not only for you but my self also as I got the gear box my self too. what I think it might be is that there is a thin aluminum case in the core of the gear box but you don't see it because of the composite material. it should of been listed as a aluminum reinforced composite gear box if this is the case. I will let you know what I find out. one last thing the picture in their website could of been of the prototype and not the final version. they should of used the final product for the pic and not what was likely the prototype.

[Monticatgeek]

another possibility is that the prototype was aluminum but then when it got closer to production they switched it to a composite and did the cosmetic redesign to save cost and/or weight. I did a little more looking at both the catalog and the website and found that in the catalog it is listed as being composite but on the website it is listed as aluminum. I am going to have them get a hold of the person the runs the website and see if they can get it corrected on the website.

[E Z turn]

This what happens when bean counters are allowed to determine what is best for our companies and manufactures bottom lines and not us the end users.

[Ice Scratcher]

another possibility is that the prototype was aluminum but then when it got closer to production they switched it to a composite and did the cosmetic redesign to save cost and/or weight. I did a little more looking at both the catalog and the website and found that in the catalog it is listed as being composite but on the website it is listed as aluminum. I am going to have them get a hold of the person the runs the website and see if they can get it corrected on the website.

Where do you get this catalog?

I've been using Clam since 1984, haven't ever seen the "catalog"...

But with the gear box being on backorder for over a month, someone had the time to contact folks who already paid for one..

Something like..

Dear Customer,

The product you have paid for and agreed on is not going to be available.. We have a different product that we've decided fills the same need..

But it's made of plastic..

Would you like us to still send it, or refund your money? "

I'm saying that because it took them a month between payment and receiving the gear box...

The price of $70+ tax seemed slightly on the high side but for a quality gear box it was alright. But $70 for anything in a plastic box I'm going to wonder what happened to my money..

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[Shack man Shoney]

Scratcher come in off the ledge lil buddy.... I still remember back in the early 80's my grandpa ordered a new 3/8" corded hand drill thinking it was going to be an aluminum frame, when it came it was plastic/composite. He sent it back and swore it would never work.... heck, today I doubt that you can find one that is not composite or mostly composite. Give the thing a chance, your worried about a plastic gearbox for some reason and had the thought even occurred to you that your powering a plastic drill reduction with a plastic drill? It looked like pretty beefy thick composite to me and may be much stronger and impact resistant than some thin die cast aluminum housing that would be likely to crack under load in a extremely cold environment. I understand it wasn't exactly what you ordered but it doesn't mean it won't be the quality product that is going to get you twice as many holes per battery like you want it to.

[Monticatgeek]

Where do you get this catalog?

I've been using Clam since 1984, haven't ever seen the "catalog"...

But with the gear box being on backorder for over a month, someone had the time to contact folks who already paid for one..

Something like..

Dear Customer,

The product you have paid for and agreed on is not going to be available.. We have a different product that we've decided fills the same need..

But it's made of plastic..

Would you like us to still send it, or refund your money? "

I'm saying that because it took them a month between payment and receiving the gear box...

The price of $70+ tax seemed slightly on the high side but for a quality gear box it was alright. But $70 for anything in a plastic box I'm going to wonder what happened to my money..

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here is the PDF copy from the Clam Website. if you want a actual print copy contact customer service and ask them to send you one.

http://96bda424cfcc34d9dd1a-0a7f10f87519dba22d2dbc6233a731e5.r41.cf2.rackcdn.com/clamoutdoors/2016-catologs/2016-2017_Clam_Master_Catalog.pdf

[Ice Scratcher]

Scratcher come in off the ledge lil buddy.... I still remember back in the early 80's my grandpa ordered a new 3/8" corded hand drill thinking it was going to be an aluminum frame, when it came it was plastic/composite. He sent it back and swore it would never work.... heck, today I doubt that you can find one that is not composite or mostly composite. Give the thing a chance, your worried about a plastic gearbox for some reason and had the thought even occurred to you that your powering a plastic drill reduction with a plastic drill? It looked like pretty beefy thick composite to me and may be much stronger and impact resistant than some thin die cast aluminum housing that would be likely to crack under load in a extremely cold environment. I understand it wasn't exactly what you ordered but it doesn't mean it won't be the quality product that is going to get you twice as many holes per battery like you want it to.

Some valid points, I would be more worried about plastic in the cold than aluminum.. Another thing is the shaft the drill attaches to is slightly off center which makes the drill wobble in place.. If the gear box was aluminum it might eventually crack from the flexing..

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[Ice Scratcher]

here is the PDF copy from the Clam Website. if you want a actual print copy contact customer service and ask them to send you one.

http://96bda424cfcc34d9dd1a-0a7f10f87519dba22d2dbc6233a731e5.r41.cf2.rackcdn.com/clamoutdoors/2016-catologs/2016-2017_Clam_Master_Catalog.pdf

Thanks

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[Agronomist_at_IA]

LMAO....this could be like the spring bobber deal clam had a year or so ago....I' sure next year the clam plate will be all composite....$70 lmao.

[Ice Scratcher]

It really does seem to work well though..

I don't care what's turning it, any auger will work substandard if the blades aren't as good as could be.

Thinking I'm going to end up liking this rig, it's a lightweight 8" power auger even at 2/1 in low, it seems as fast as most gas augers..

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[Shack man Shoney]

Do you still think your going to be able to get twice the holes on 1 battery as you did before? I mean after seeing the whole thing assembled and seeing that the drill will be turning twice as much and not nearly as fast?

[Ice Scratcher]

Do you still think your going to be able to get twice the holes on 1 battery as you did before? I mean after seeing the whole thing assembled and seeing that the drill will be turning twice as much and not nearly as fast?

In short, yes..

The motor is not drawing nearly the same amps.. See how many holes you can drill in high speed, going by your theory you should get three times as many holes..

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[Ice Scratcher]

If a drill has trouble or won't turn an 8 inch bit, you have zero 8 inch holes.. So anything more is twice as much, not sure how that works?

I don't think I've said twice the holes on the same battery.. But I think I said it will be a lot better on batteries= more holes..

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[Shack man Shoney]

In short, yes..

The motor is not drawing nearly the same amps.. See how many holes you can drill in high speed, going by your theory you should get three times as many holes..

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Not true at all.... My "rhetoric" is based on a theory of good combinations, this includes 3 main factors: RPM, Torque, and the work being done in a certain amount of time by a quality brushless drill. Simply reducing the RPM's of the Auger (by roughly half) while keeping the drill motor spinning at the same rpm's will reduce amperage, however, it will be running at that lower amperage for a longer amount of time (roughly double) which in my opinion should fairly well negate any advantage gained by the reduced amperage. Oh and don't forget that you have added another spinning assembly to the equation as well in your gear reduction that will have a small amount of friction and rob a certain amount of power to turn as well. For the old brushed drill with nicad batteries  and 280 in/lbs of torque with a lower RPM that could never hope to to spin a 8" auger, this is a reasonable option that will help a guy drill some holes. In my opinion, if your drill is Brushless/lithium ion and has minimum of 725 in/lbs of torque, any reduced amperage advantage will be at best minimal and probably in fact, nonexistent. I anxiously await your "on ice" testing and reviews.

[Agronomist_at_IA]

I still don't understand paying $70 for a gear box....thing should cost $30 or less. Clam is a greedy greedy company.  I mean $75-$100 will get you the bare brushless hammer drill with torque that will be better anyway.

[SLAYERFISH]

Aint nothing wrong with plastic.  cars and trucks are 50% plastic these days.  I've seen snowmobile gearboxes made of plastic.  many intake manifolds on car engines are made of plastic.

Plastic is lightweight and strong.

[Ice Scratcher]

Aint nothing wrong with plastic.  cars and trucks are 50% plastic these days.  I've seen snowmobile gearboxes made of plastic.  many intake manifolds on car engines are made of plastic.

Plastic is lightweight and strong.

We were talking about chainsaws the other day.. I said I'm glad for plastic parts on those, the old all metal saws were really heavy.

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[SLAYERFISH]

We were talking about chainsaws the other day.. I said I'm glad for plastic parts on those, the old all metal saws were really heavy.

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exactly.  If engineered correctly plastic is just fine.

[Shack man Shoney]

I still don't understand paying $70 for a gear box....thing should cost $30 or less. Clam is a greedy greedy company.  I mean $75-$100 will get you the bare brushless hammer drill with torque that will be better anyway.

X2 I dont think the plastic is the problem but the price shure is. Im also not sure where the fairy tale of more holes per battery with gear reduction came from either??? Like Agronomist said $70 is nearly the price point for a bare tool 1200 in/lb Milwaukee that i promise doesnt need any gear reduction to make a 8" hole.

[Ice Scratcher]

I still don't understand paying $70 for a gear box....thing should cost $30 or less. Clam is a greedy greedy company.  I mean $75-$100 will get you the bare brushless hammer drill with torque that will be better anyway.

I see what your saying, but I see it more like this..

What is the cost of running an 8" auger?

Gas, propane, electric? 

Then the cost of fuel and maintenance time..

Weight..

This rig should only need the blades sharpened. The drill is not figured into my cost of an 8" hole. The drills and batteries come with life and work..

17lbs- With 4amph battery..

Mora- $20
Plate- $40
Gearbox-$60

$120 Total.. Blades are easy to find and cheap enough and I sharpen them myself..



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[Ice Scratcher]

X2 I dont think the plastic is the problem but the price shure is. Im also not sure where the fairy tale of more holes per battery with gear reduction came from either??? Like Agronomist said $70 is nearly the price point for a bare tool 1200 in/lb Milwaukee that i promise doesnt need any gear reduction to make a 8" hole.

What I don't think you guys realize is you are already running some type of gear reduction..

Those two gears are designed for general purpose use..

Why do real trucks have a granny gear?

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[Ice Scratcher]

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uhepiOHUkaI

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[Shack man Shoney]

What I don't think you guys realize is you are already running some type of gear reduction..

Those two gears are designed for general purpose use..

Why do real trucks have a granny gear?

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Trucks have a granny gear for the same reason they have a "high gear", because different situations call for differnt gearing. Unfortunately we don't have the option of changing gears while drilling at this point. If you think about the granny gear as the power to take off and turn the auger then you must look at the "high gear" as fuel economy, aka battery life. How many MPG can you get driving around in granny all day? Now there is a point of diminishing returns which is why what works best is a compromise of both. A "good combination" that gives you good torque, good speed and the maximum battery life.

[Rugburn]

The case looks to be molded Nylon, should prove to be very durable. Then add in two (maybe double, can't see with the gears installed) bearing bronze bushings and a bearing. Gears are a specialty nook of the manufacturing industry, they take dedicated equipment to manufacture. Thus, gears tend to be pricey. Price out building two injection molds needed to produce the two case halves. Don't forget the two shafts with various machining operations needed. Who's going to begrudge a company from turning a profit? The unit will do exactly what it is deigned to do, give you the torque needed to run a larger diameter auger. This is the evolution of the revolution. Get on the boat or take your ball and go home. Many anglers are tickled with theses new setups. Times are changing. Search "DORA", glad we're not waiting around. I'm pleased to buy from a company striving to improve and  give us what we asked for. Thank you Clam Corp........!