Surprised to see power augers still made.

[Mrpike1973]

Got the In fisherman gear guide today it had Reeds sporting goods sale pamphlet included. I was very surprised to see Jiffy and Eskimo still making power augers even with Strikemaster out of the power auger business, I thought the others would follow suit. I understand why some may still want a power auger but last year on the lakes never heard 1 power auger running. Unfortunately the Eskimo pistol bit in 6 inch still has no power point. Just an observation. I'm not being negative but I'm surprised Jiffy is still going 30# augers yet? Holy Cow.

[DR.SPECKLER]

Im not surprised.theres still places that get really thick ice.michigan is not one anymore.

[filetandrelease]

 
 X2 not that thick here either ,
 I’m still hanging on to the gas

[hole_hopper454]

I was going to sell my gas auger this year, haven't used it in 2 years now. Going to keep it at least one more year, I have a deck to build and about 50 trees to plant next spring. Going to pick up an earth bit to dig all my holes. Doubt it will see the ice this year...

[lefty2053]

Got the In fisherman gear guide today it had Reeds sporting goods sale pamphlet included. I was very surprised to see Jiffy and Eskimo still making power augers even with Strikemaster out of the power auger business, I thought the others would follow suit. I understand why some may still want a power auger but last year on the lakes never heard 1 power auger running. Unfortunately the Eskimo pistol bit in 6 inch still has no power point. Just an observation. I'm not being negative but I'm surprised Jiffy is still going 30# augers yet? Holy Cow.

Colorado has lakes that get over 3 feet of ice, Same with Wyoming and I am sure Alaska get more. The Lake the Snow cat fell in sometimes has over 4' of ice. 

[OldSailor]

I was thinking also that there are places that you can go that have no electricity available, but you can bring in gas. Just sayin'!!

[lefty2053]

Mrpike1973 just wondering if that is when you were born? 1973? It is when I got married.

[hardwater diehard]

Thought propane augers would of made a bigger splash ..weight and some first gen issues ..sealed that technologies fate ...I liked the idea of the propane canisters EZPZ ..no/less smell ..dual purpose for cooking and/or heating. I can only imagine with the battery technology will be in the next 5 years...

[cwavs1982]

I thought the same thing with the propane augers.  Unfortunately, they were released just as the electric drills and composite augers  were launched.  The propane units were sold as a cleaner burning fuel and no fumes, then the electric units came out and made all that go away. 

I still have my propane unit but it hasn't seen ice in 4 years.  Gas still has its place - there are places that get the thick ice, or some folks still want to tinker and tune the gas units. Can't fault 'em - its a lost art.

[ran7ger]

 we get kiiiiinda thick ice up here in saskatchewan.  strikemaster hasn't seen the ice in 5 or 6 years, m18 does the job just fine but it'll be years before the old timers up here go away from their jiffys.

[Milwaukee]

I live in Milwaukee. Still plenty of ice here by the end of the season (most years) to have a power auger.

Last year was one of the worst ice years I remember and we still had 12-16" by late February.

I remember multiple years in the past decade where the ice was damn near 3ft thick. 2018 I was driving my jeep out on 25" of ice and was doing so until mid March.


I just own both. Early ice (sub 4") I'll use a hand auger. Anything over 5" and I breakout the power auger. I like lots of holes and being mobile. Ever hand augered 100 holes through 6" ice? It sucks.

[TIBS]

I think you’re gonna have a market for gas augers for a while yet.  There’s plenty of people out there who don’t believe in those new fangled electrics.

[Mrpike1973]

Thanks for the info all

Lefty yep born in May of 73 the wife 69 I'm always younger makes it fun congrats on being married since 73 that's awesome!

[kayl]

I live in Milwaukee. Still plenty of ice here by the end of the season (most years) to have a power auger.

Last year was one of the worst ice years I remember and we still had 12-16" by late February.

I remember multiple years in the past decade where the ice was damn near 3ft thick. 2018 I was driving my jeep out on 25" of ice and was doing so until mid March.


I just own both. Early ice (sub 4") I'll use a hand auger. Anything over 5" and I breakout the power auger. I like lots of holes and being mobile. Ever hand augered 100 holes through 6" ice? It sucks.

A drill auger can handle 28" easily. I used mine up near Crandon in ice that thick.

[32footsteps]

What I don’t get with this topic are the people that are all or nothing with a certain type of auger. I have a drill, a gas auger, two hand augers, and a chisel. I use them all. They are tools. You don’t hammer a nail with a screw driver. You don’t punch a 6 inch hole with a drill or hand auger when fishing for Great Lakes trout and salmon. I suppose if you have a narrow focus on what you are targeting then having one type would work but if you truly are a multi species angler the need for different types of tools is warranted.

My gas auger got a ton of use last year. More than my drill did primarily because of what I was focusing on.

[DR.SPECKLER]

What I don’t get with this topic are the people that are all or nothing with a certain type of auger. I have a drill, a gas auger, two hand augers, and a chisel. I use them all. They are tools. You don’t hammer a nail with a screw driver. You don’t punch a 6 inch hole with a drill or hand auger when fishing for Great Lakes trout and salmon. I suppose if you have a narrow focus on what you are targeting then having one type would work but if you truly are a multi species angler the need for different types of tools is warranted.

My gas auger got a ton of use last year. More than my drill did primarily because of what I was focusing on.

right on.the drill is not the tool for everything as in really thick ice with a big diameter auger bit.i use mine up to 16” then the jiffy comes out.my pro4 lite is not that heavy.guys that still haul out the model 30s good for them.they are real men lol.im just waiting to hear stories on burnt up drills.i own a drill auger,hand auger and gas auger still.

[Sylvanboat]

...guys that still haul out the model 30s good for them.they are real men...

All ice fishermen are real men.

[hawg]

And the propane I used to have weighed the same as my old 30.

[dsupercat]

What I don’t get with this topic are the people that are all or nothing with a certain type of auger. I have a drill, a gas auger, two hand augers, and a chisel. I use them all. They are tools. You don’t hammer a nail with a screw driver. You don’t punch a 6 inch hole with a drill or hand auger when fishing for Great Lakes trout and salmon. I suppose if you have a narrow focus on what you are targeting then having one type would work but if you truly are a multi species angler the need for different types of tools is warranted.

My gas auger got a ton of use last year. More than my drill did primarily because of what I was focusing on.

Totally agree I have both and use them in different situations.  I also know that my strikemaster 4 stroke will still work 20 years from now but my 40volt will not.

[panfishman13]

i still run a gas auger, but beginning of last season i snapped off the throttle handle, so i bumped back to the good ol' hand auger until i (after some trial and error) got the replacement part. i always carry a spud bar for safety reasons, but now i throw a hand auger in the truck too, just in case.

the lesson i keep being taught -time after time- is that the versatile angler is a successful angler; and the more prepared you are to face adversity, the more versatile you become.

i plan to buy an electric auger or a drill of some kind this season and hopefully make myself even more versatile.

[Buckshots]

I have a SM Solo I got the year they came out. The thing just works. I’ve gone through a few bits, I’m due for another one. Seems like the welds eventually break and the auger starts to bind. I’m thinking of going with a lite flight bit. I’d love to get a drill setup, but there’s nothing wrong with the auger I have now. Until it craps out, I’m using it. And I won it in a fishing contest. So all it cost me was a 30 dollar entry fee.

The drill setups are nice but they can get very spendy on batteries real quick. People say they run forever on a 5 amp battery but that’s just not true. You get into some 20” ice and 20 holes is about it. I typically drill 15-60 holes per outing. I wouldn’t feel good about going fishing if I didn’t have 3 batteries.

[Fishwacker1]

Please Keep selling your gas tanakas. I’ll keep buying them cheap. I am up to 2 -270’s and 1-350.
I browse several times a week for the right deal on a true commercial / Japanese motor.

Thanks

[DawntoDusk]

Gas augers will always have their place. Anywhere it gets really thick ice you will drain your batteries really quick. Also, if you take multi day trips into the backcountry where you may not have access to power, an electric auger won't do you much good if you can't recharge your batteries.