Ice Master Ice Auger/Power Drill Conversion Kits

[ICE4ME75]

got an Ice Master Ice Auger/Power Drill Conversion Kit for Christmas and was wondering how good it works. was reading some reviews on-line but had mixed reviews. figure i would ask some real fisherman and get some feedback. (ie.. drills used, augers used, battery life) thought about packing my batteries in a case with towels around them with pocket warmers to keep them from being drained by the cold. thanks for all and any help.

p.s. hope you all had a safe and merry Christmas and good luck/be safe with the ice search

[toolmaker66]

Make sure you use a safety bar to prevent the auger itself from going down the hole. As to how long a bteery lasts, not sure. My buddy got one, we wrenched it in the chuck very tight and drilled 3 holes before the auger came loose in the chuck and went down the hole, never to be seen again. ..... We didn't try the drill after that lol. A small cooler with towels would probably do the trick,, as that was our plan. 2 batteries that are in decent shape should last the day, didn't seem like you were working the drill too hard.

[ICE4ME75]

the conversion kit has a bungy that goes around the drill so if it comes loose it wont fall in. the cooler idea was what i was thinking. i'll let you know how it makes out. thanks for the insight.

[bigZin315]

i have the drill adapter for my auger and it works great! I have two lithium ion battery's that last the day

[tundra1]

I just got a dewalt 20v Li-ion 1/2 drill this summer and a 6in lazer auger , hope to try them soon....I talked to dave Genz last year he has 18v and said could get a bunch of holes per battery with it in 6 or so inches of ice...so will be great for early ice. I had a guy at work make an adapter so will need to keep an eye on chuck sounds like...

[iFish365]

Im also goin to give this a try this season. I walk and sometimes alot so the less weight the better. Ive never had a gas setup and even though i usually drill a lot ive always drilled manually. Ive never really had a problem drilling manually, but since I like to bring a drill anytime im anchoring a shelter anyway it wouldnt take much to get an adapter and just attach the bottom half of the hand setup.

[ICE4ME75]

well got the adaptor on the auger and now I'm just waiting for some ice. just bought 2 new dewalt 18v batteries so I'm hoping they will do 10-15 holes each. should be a lot better than having to do it by hand. messed up my rotator cuff about a month ago so hopefully this will help me drill some holes without messing it up anymore than it already is. good luck to all this year and be safe.

[Pequod1]

I was sold on this idea a few yrs. ago when a guy on Honeoye let me try his Dewalt. The ice was a good 5-6" that day and I went right through w/o a problem. I bought an adapter and tried with my cheap drill and I did not have enough torque. Santa just got me a drill with 550 lbs of torque so I am looking forward to trying it out. Should be great for early and late ice.

[ICE4ME75]

Thanks for the input pequod. Let me know how you make out and I will do the same