Author Topic: Electric auger late season ice  (Read 6177 times)

Offline EVAN NIM

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Electric auger late season ice
« on: Feb 18, 2020, 09:06 AM »
Ive been trying to determine which electric I want to invest in next year,

So far If the Ion Gen 2 releases a 10” i might go that route, if not it will likely be a strike master 10”

Im still tossing up the idea of a 8” though...

Few questions for comment..

What size augers are you guys using any why, are there any advantages for either the 8” or 10”

Does any one have any feedback on electrics for late season?
I had a gentleman help me out with his 8” ion x yesterday, my gas job got wet and wouldnt fire for my last hole :-\

So he helped me out,thank you! However near The end of the hole, it really looked like it was struggling to turn the slush,
He didnt really pull out and clean the slush out the way i would have, but with my gas job it still seams to pull hard without clearing slush, any comments or feedback ??


Offline Scrunt

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #1 on: Feb 18, 2020, 01:42 PM »
I purchased a strikemaster lithium 40v 10 inch this winter and I’m beyond happy with it. I haven’t had to use my extension yet (I will this week up north) but I’ve been punching ice right to the power head with no issue. I clean the hole out a couple times when drilling. The 10 inch is great for sight fishing and just having that extra room for larger larger fish is a big bonus. I had been using a jiffy that turned 30 this year so making the switch was like night and day. The most holes I’ve punched with it in a day would be about 25 through 33 inches of ice and I was down one bar. (The battery was kept nice and warm mind you) Go with the strikemaster, you won’t be disappointed.

Offline DR.SPECKLER

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #2 on: Feb 18, 2020, 01:52 PM »
I got to use my bro in laws strikemaster 40v 8”.it was heavier than my drill setup but cut so much smoother and break thru was like butter compared to my ridgid drill with 8” mora that gets pretty jarring at the bottom of the hole.i was impressed with the 40v and was still carrying it with 1 arm.only downfall is the price.i paid half of the cost of the strikemaster on a ridgid octane/clam plate and 8” mora.my drill cuts faster but can wander and grabs at the bottom of the hole.it was quite enjoyable cutting holes with the 40v tho.its a very nice electric auger.

Offline Churchill River

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #3 on: Feb 18, 2020, 10:12 PM »
From the people I have talked to and had the chance to use friends.......I would go with the strike master as well.

As for a 8 inch hole vs 10 inch.  When you start out fresh in the morning with a 8 inch hole, by the end of the day you are down to a 6 to 7 inch hole.
Starting out with 10 inch hole, you are down to a 8 to 9 inch hole by the end of the day.  For perch fishing the 8 inch is enough.  If yo are after
Walleye and Pike, the 10 inch is nice.

I have a Jiffy with 8 inch and 10 inch flighting.  My next auger will be electric for sure.

Offline zforste1

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #4 on: Feb 19, 2020, 06:55 AM »
switched to electric  3 seasons ago. started with an iON X 8" and loved it. Strikemaster 40V came out and i liked how it looked and how fast it cut compared to my iON. My dad doesn't have the need for speed so he bought my iON and i purchased the Strikemaster 8". This season after struggling to get a few big walleye's to turn and come up the hole (28", 29" and 31") i decided to buy the 10" bit for it and after half a dozen outings i can confidently say i have zero regrets. I still get to drill holes with the iON X from time to time when fishing with my dad and its still a great auger, i find i do need to clear the slush from the hole more often with the iON than i do with my Strikemaster when the ice is getting thick (28" last weekend). Hope that helps.
"Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a day, don't teach a man to fish and feed yourself. He's a grown man and fishing isn't that hard" - Ron Swanson

Offline ben-lucky

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #5 on: Feb 25, 2020, 02:53 PM »
I bought a k drill this year and bought dad a strike master.  the strike master is much easier to handle and I prefer it over the k drill.  k drill is light and easy to haul around but you don't get many holes out of it this time of year.  10 holes max with 5 amp battery.
I used an ion last weekend on a tip and still would take the strike master over the ion.


Offline 350 Mag

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #6 on: Feb 29, 2020, 05:05 AM »
We were out last 2 days.

We were in an area that had bad slush but has since the snow has dropped and the slush is 90% froze.

The first day we went buddies Honda Strikemaster barely made it through.  It took a long time to get holes.

The next day I asked the other guy to bring his Ion 40 volt so we could have a "drill off" BECAUSE I know it wouldn't have been able to get through that slush.

I brought my  big 51 cc Eskimo and too my surprise it had trouble in a few spots as well.

There is no electric on the market that make it through that frozen slush....NONE.

The Ion guy wouldn't bring his...lol....he knew what would happen.


Offline Fishermen

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #7 on: Feb 29, 2020, 05:18 AM »
Love my StrikeMaster pro gas

Offline 350 Mag

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #8 on: Feb 29, 2020, 07:30 AM »
I forgot to mention the bite was great.  First day was better for numbers....2nd day we caught less fish but still got our limits and released a bunch of +22" ...one 28".




Offline EVAN NIM

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #9 on: Feb 29, 2020, 08:15 AM »
We were out last 2 days.

We were in an area that had bad slush but has since the snow has dropped and the slush is 90% froze.

The first day we went buddies Honda Strikemaster barely made it through.  It took a long time to get holes.

The next day I asked the other guy to bring his Ion 40 volt so we could have a "drill off" BECAUSE I know it wouldn't have been able to get through that slush.

I brought my  big 51 cc Eskimo and too my surprise it had trouble in a few spots as well.

There is no electric on the market that make it through that frozen slush....NONE.

The Ion guy wouldn't bring his...lol....he knew what would happen.


It sounds like your assuming you’d have issues since the gas did?

Offline 350 Mag

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #10 on: Feb 29, 2020, 09:42 AM »

It sounds like your assuming you’d have issues since the gas did?

Lol,


That and the fact the guy with the Ion refused to bring his and try it because it's happened more than once that the Ion couldn't even get 1 hole.

I have a long spiral on my 51 cc and can usually drill a complete hole in 3ft + of ice without cleaning....but yesterday on a few holes in stopped cold.  I have never seen ice that crappy.  Which also means we won't have a good "high ice" season this year.


I wanted the guy to bring his Ion so I could do a video, as people do not believe that an electric cannot drill.....and you can forget ANY 18volt Cordless Drill no chance in hell.

I would give you 100 to 1 odds on a bet there isn't an Electric on the market to make it through that frozen slush.

Bring your electric up....

IF it can out drill my gas I will pay for your trip....

Offline ran7ger

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #11 on: Feb 29, 2020, 09:51 AM »
The electrics don't like slush but once it freezes up it's just ice.  Drilled 6 holes with my m18 in about 40" ice yesterday, including frozen slush.  Still had 75% battery and I know my blades are a bit dull.  Believe it or not, old gas guys won't and i couldn't care less.  Works great for the type of fishing I do. 

 With how much ice there is at this point I still may have to get the Honda going for end of season, hasn't ran in 6 or 7 years now.  I agree 350 the honda is a bit slow but does have a ton of torque and to me drilling holes isn't a race it's a job.

Offline 350 Mag

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #12 on: Feb 29, 2020, 10:44 AM »
The electrics don't like slush but once it freezes up it's just ice.  Drilled 6 holes with my m18 in about 40" ice yesterday, including frozen slush.  Still had 75% battery and I know my blades are a bit dull.  Believe it or not, old gas guys won't and i couldn't care less.  Works great for the type of fishing I do. 

 With how much ice there is at this point I still may have to get the Honda going for end of season, hasn't ran in 6 or 7 years now.  I agree 350 the honda is a bit slow but does have a ton of torque and to me drilling holes isn't a race it's a job.

Trouble is this slush isn't frozen, therein lies the problem.  It's like half-cured concrete.

Your electric might make a hole but it will take longer and your batteries will be done after A few.

I doubt it will make a hole....

Bring your electric up.

We will have a drill off.

Gas vs ANY electric. 



If I lose I pay for your whole trip... including lodging, fuel and meals.

And I will show you some good fishing spots.

If you lose you lose the auger....and pay for your trip.


Takers????

Offline ran7ger

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #13 on: Feb 29, 2020, 11:04 AM »
 haha nope if i went that way it's to fish not piss around with auger races.  your old eskimo does well when you've got slush and need a bunch of holes, the rest of the year it's a big heavy stinking pain in the ass.  an electric is a more efficient tool in every other scenerio, can we agree on that?

Offline BigJumb

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #14 on: Feb 29, 2020, 12:14 PM »
I bought a strike master 40v 10" beginning of November. Kept my jiffy 3 HP. 10" for backup . It runs great has sharp blades drills through anything but my strike master will drill almost two holes before I'm through one,it's lighter . Lots of power . No gas. Infact the one day I brought it out it leaked on my Eskimo shack stunk for the next two trips.
In less then 10 years I'm pretty sure there won't be any gas ones being made. Maybe less judging by what's around in the local fishing stores. So keep the gas ones in tip top shape. These electric augers will have crazy power in a few more years. Look at the ion  over the last few years . Was that ion a G2 ? Or first gen? . Mag350.
If I have to use a gasser for the last week or two around the reservoirs so be it. My electric has bin on 20 trips this year . Sometimes I pretend to pull a recoil rope on my 40v to start my electric and laugh. 🤟😁

Offline YoungGun96

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #15 on: Mar 09, 2020, 02:57 PM »
I have very limited experience with electric augers but lots with the strikemaster laser flightings. Be aware that any dirty ice will dull the blades very quickly. They will feel sharp but the auger will fight you the whole way through the ice. Replacement blades for a 10" are $90. If it is sharp it drills fast, but if it's not, it'll drive you insane.

Offline ben-lucky

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #16 on: Mar 10, 2020, 11:11 AM »
Trouble is this slush isn't frozen, therein lies the problem.  It's like half-cured concrete.

Your electric might make a hole but it will take longer and your batteries will be done after A few.

I doubt it will make a hole....

Bring your electric up.

We will have a drill off.

Gas vs ANY electric. 



If I lose I pay for your whole trip... including lodging, fuel and meals.

And I will show you some good fishing spots.

If you lose you lose the auger....and pay for your trip.


Takers????

where do I have to go to meet you.  this sounds interesting.  my k drill pounded through yesterday.  6 inches of flood water under the snow which made the hole wet.

Offline sebago2jigtima

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #17 on: Mar 10, 2020, 11:13 AM »
id like a free trip too !  :clap:

Offline BigJumb

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #18 on: Mar 14, 2020, 09:08 AM »
Used my jiffy for years and when my blades are dull I don't bye new ones my original blades have drilled 1000+ holes and I get them sharpened once twice a year for a whopping 10$ . They also do strikemaster blades. Which do dull quick in sand . When I go to dief I take my jiffy . But that strikemaster in clean hard ice will drill two holes two one jiffy all day long. Poor jiffy just hangs on the wall now. 😁

Offline Nightbird

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #19 on: Mar 14, 2020, 07:36 PM »
Used my jiffy for years and when my blades are dull I don't bye new ones my original blades have drilled 1000+ holes and I get them sharpened once twice a year for a whopping 10$ . They also do strikemaster blades. Which do dull quick in sand . When I go to dief I take my jiffy . But that strikemaster in clean hard ice will drill two holes two one jiffy all day long. Poor jiffy just hangs on the wall now. 😁
Where do you get them sharpened?

Offline BigJumb

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #20 on: Mar 15, 2020, 10:43 PM »
Had my jiffy done at minitune in stoon. Sometimes 2-3x a season ,depends how many times I go to the fishfarm 😁.And they said they can do my strikemasters haven't had them off yet as it still cuts great!

Offline whitetip

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #21 on: Mar 16, 2020, 09:54 PM »
Hey

Bigjumbo have you been at the fish farm lately?

I would like to get out there a few times before the end of season.

Thanks

Offline Nightbird

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #22 on: Mar 16, 2020, 09:56 PM »
Had my jiffy done at minitune in stoon. Sometimes 2-3x a season ,depends how many times I go to the fishfarm 😁.And they said they can do my strikemasters haven't had them off yet as it still cuts great!
Thanks!

Offline BigJumb

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #23 on: Mar 17, 2020, 12:39 PM »
I haven't bin to the fishfarm.
I don't think you need to go there unless it's close to home. Most of dief has good trout fishing anywhere.

Offline herschel

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Re: Electric auger late season ice
« Reply #24 on: Mar 17, 2020, 01:12 PM »
We fishing primarily up in the area by Montreal Lake.  Every season there are parts on some lakes that get the slush, usually, it is 20-24 inches of ice and then a layer of slush/water followed by another 12 inches of ice. 

Up until two seasons ago we ran gas augers only and come March when the conditions get like I describe above there were issues in bad areas drilling holes.  The auger would struggle but get through most holes but every once and a while it would stop dead in the hole and sometimes it would basically freeze up.  Meaning that it wouldn't turn nor could you easily lift it back up out of the hole.

Basically I am saying conditions are challenging.   

As of last season, we stopped bring the gas auger out.  We only use a Strikemaster and a drill with an adaptor.  The conditions haven't changed and we still have some issues. I would say that with the electrics, and more so the drill, getting stopped in a hole is more frequent than with the gas auger but completely manageable.  One trick we have found with the electric and slush is that you need to be almost pulling up on the auger as you drill and definitely not applying pressure downwards.

One huge positive with the electric is reverse.  With the gas auger, when it gets stuck two guys needed to pull hard on it to get it free.  With the electric, you just switch it into reverse and your fine. 

The reverse is also amazing for clearing our holes, once you are through the ice switch it to reverse and it sucks all the slush and snow out the bottom of the hole. 

 



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