Beware Eskimo Ice Auger Owners

[Bumski]

IceShanty seems to function in multiple capacities, but I certainly don't think Consumer Warning Threads is a "con" of the site. So "Pull cord and fuel lines, really?" Yes really.

FYI... there is a Remove button right next to he Modify button in the upper right hand corner of your post, in case you double post. 

Thanks for the heads up bud....I don't know why I didn't see that...

Warnings of some product deficiencies are a good thing I agree but when someone gets all worked up about things as easy and cheap as pull cords and fuel lines it gets to be nit-picking.....in my mind....

[FG Steve]

I have watched guys ... pull way too far, and it only takes a short pull, quickly, not a long pulllllll. !!! They will break and 90% of the guys know how to properly pull start them but still the 10% that don’t !!

guys think they have to yank on it like they are starting a seized up 25hp lawn mower. If they would’ve simply read the darn book these issues would not exist.

I do know that there is a way to use the pull start and a way to not use it. First pull the rope out until you feel tension, Then pull it hard the rest of the way. Some people don't read their instructions and just go out and yank on that rope. This causes problems with the recoil system and can break it.

First x2 on these comments.

Second, I prefer the old metal recoil parts like on my >20 yr old Tecumseh power head.  Maybe I inherited my Dad's preference for metal over plastic on some things.

Third, the subject of the thread makes it sound like, "look out for those dangerous Eskimo auger owners!"  Might also be true. 

[Ice Scratcher]

Third, the subject of the thread makes it sound like, "look out for those dangerous Eskimo auger owners!"  Might also be true. 

Its not meant to read like that? 

<°)))>{

[fish_finder]

I have a Rapala nitro which uses the same parts as eskimo. Guess what two parts i had problems with..you guessed it! First year i had it starter blew up and no i dont pull hard on it like most. Glad a got a new one before when the warranty was good for it. This year th3 gas line let go inside the tank...fixed that on my own. You would think theyd remedy the design!

[mdrobny]

I ordered one(recoil) to keep as a spare after I bought my auger because they all break sometime whether it be the rope or gears.
I didn't want to be on a trip and have a rope break and not have a quick fix. I didn't know they had problems with them till I saw this thread.I know from other equipment at work that that's going to happen more likely than any other problem.
I'm on my 6TH year with my auger and still have that spare recoil. I was surprised to read that they covered it under warranty period outside the first few months after purchase.

[Chris338378]

There's two kinds of people, the people who take care of their stuff and don't beat on it and people who could destroy a Sherman Tank in no time flat.  Let's be realistic about this, most augers are using the plastic housings for their pull starts and I'd be willing to bet a good number of them are made by the same company with the only difference being the color of the plastic.  I don't think Eskimo should be stuck footing the bill to replace a pull start if someone yanks on it like some pissed off gorilla with his n*ts in a vice.  Now on the other hand if it's broken right out of the box they should replace it under the warranty or the store you bought it from should replace the entire machine.  As other's have said it only takes a few bad apples to ruin it for everyone.  As for their products being over priced and low quality I disagree in that their prices are some of the best you're going to find and their stuff is good quality.  Most of the problems with stuff breaking is the person using it forcing things because they think they know how it's supposed to go. 

[Ice Scratcher]

Most of the problems with stuff breaking is the person using it forcing things because they think they know how it's supposed to go.

The YouTube video and following comments are glaring example of that type of user... On this page..

https://www.iceshanty.com/ice_fishing/index.php?topic=349684.msg3800101#msg3800101

By that video alone, he almost had folks worried about their drill triggers... Nothing to worry about if he knows how his drill actually is supposed to work...

<°)))>{

[fieds]

its good to get a heads up on these type of things, ive had a pretty irritating Eskimo experience with my new grizzly and if i get a response from Eskimo that's along the lines of their auger statement the grizzly will be the last ardisam product i ever buy. i wont put the cart before the horse but after waiting 3-4 days for a response to my email im not happy that i have to call on monday.

 love my z51 when its not leaking gas, no problems with recoil thankfully. Loved my mako til the auger fell off straight down the hole; who'd a guessed a bolt would loosen up that far, on the second trip; loved my grizzly til the pins started popping out of the QRS. At least the ball cap is still warm.

i and my buddies have had nothing but great products from classic eskimo but now days they're becomong the "lowrance" of ice fishig.

fieds

[Chris338378]

No matter what brand auger, most of the leaking fuel issues are caused by Ethanol eating the rubber in the fuel lines and seals and corroding the metal parts.  That stuff if is notorious for doing that and is why guys add Seafoam and Startron to their fuel mixes. 

[IceholeFisherman]

No matter what brand auger, most of the leaking fuel issues are caused by Ethanol eating the rubber in the fuel lines and seals and corroding the metal parts.  That stuff if is notorious for doing that and is why guys add Seafoam and Startron to their fuel mixes.

Why don't all the manufacturers just start using ethanol safe fuel lines and seals? I can assure you they don't cost that much. It DEFINITELY cost less to do it right the first time then having to do warrantee work, or losing sales to what "appears" to be bad customer service. Ethanol is a fact of life we have to deal with. They should too (not just Eskimo).

[curt69]

Why are you using fuel with ethanol in it . I only use ethanol free premium in all my 2 stroke engines . Chain saws, ice augers , weed wackers.  I even use it in some 4 strokes like my lawn mowers and my 6 hp trolling motor .

[Chris338378]

I agree with you.  Another cause for leaks is emptying the fuel and letting the seals dry out which causes them to become brittle and crack.  I don't store any of my gas powered equipment with an empty gas tank, I add some stabilizer, Seafoam, and Startron and run it once a month for a while and no problems.  Two years ago I got lucky because one of my local gas stations started selling ethanol free gas which is all I use in my gas powered equipment.  The ethanol free caned gas is a good idea but boy is that stuff expensive. 

[IceholeFisherman]

Why are you using fuel with ethanol in it . I only use ethanol free premium in all my 2 stroke engines . Chain saws, ice augers , weed wackers.  I even use it in some 4 strokes like my lawn mowers and my 6 hp trolling motor .

I don't. But it's no issue the just use ethanol safe parts. Why do you run premium? I does no good unless your compression ratio is 10 to 1 or over. It just pollutes more. Not criticism.  Just asking.

[Bumski]

I don't. But it's no issue the just use ethanol safe parts. Why do you run premium? I does no good unless your compression ratio is 10 to 1 or over. It just pollutes more. Not criticism.  Just asking.

Around here Premium is the only gas that is ethanol free....

[IceholeFisherman]

Around here Premium is the only gas that is ethanol free....

Gotcha. Another reason they should just use plastic (hoses, tanks, grommets) that is ethanol safe. Far fewer complaints and returns.

[wirenut45]

fieds, my old strikemaster has a sticker on it that says "check all bolts BEFORE each use, don,t have eskimo, so don,t know, but that sticker can,t cost more than a few cents, and has saved my a$$( auger) more than once. why wouldn,t they put one on to help the guy who pays their wages ? wire

[hartly]

fieds, my old strikemaster has a sticker on it that says "check all bolts BEFORE each use, don,t have eskimo, so don,t know, but that sticker can,t cost more than a few cents, and has saved my a$$( auger) more than once. why wouldn,t they put one on to help the guy who pays their wages ? wire

I wrap a thin layer of Teflon tape to the bolt before installing it. The tape keeps the bolt from vibrating loose . I have a few buddies that wrap hockey tape around the bolt once tightened in the flute . Only problem with the hockey tape is you have take it off to get to the bolt for what ever reason.

[IceholeFisherman]

I wrap a thin layer of Teflon tape to the bolt before installing it. The tape keeps the bolt from vibrating loose . I have a few buddies that wrap hockey tape around the bolt once tightened in the flute . Only problem with the hockey tape is you have take it off to get to the bolt for what ever reason.

Don't they use a Nyloc nut?

[Ice Scratcher]

Don't they use a Nyloc nut?

My Eskimo has a threaded collar, no nut...

<°)))>{

[hartly]

Don't they use a Nyloc nut?

No they don't unfortunately . The Bolt still vibrates loose.

[IceholeFisherman]

They are cheap at the hardware store. I think I would put one on.

[IceholeFisherman]

My Eskimo has a threaded collar, no nut...

<°)))>{

I see.

[Ice Scratcher]

Yeah my bolt only comes out when switching bits between earth and ice bits.. I think mine stays put because of rust lol...

<°)))>{

[Chris338378]

A simple solution to prevent that from happening is clean the threads with alcohol and add a drop of removable (blue) Lok-Tight.  I also put a drop of it on the bolts that hold the auger blades on.  It keeps the bolts from backing out from vibrations and is easy to remove with tools. 

[lefty2053]

AS for the bolts coming out. My auger is like my car. I check things out to be sure it is ready to go. You check your oil and tire pressure all the time(or at least should be). Why not check out things on the auger? Bolt,Fuel,Spark Plug and filters. I always put oil on the bolt to make it easy to come out and go in and never had it come loose.

[32footsteps]

I’m too dumb to use a product that will seal a bolt into an auger shaft and I’m too lazy to constantly check it.

Once mine is tight I simply put two wraps of electrical tape around the bolt and collar. Seems to be less of a hassle than loctite or constant checking.

[motocross269]

I had a Nightmare experience with an Eskimo HC40 and Eskimo's customer service...And it wasn't from abuse..I have been working on and racing 2 stroke and 4 stroke mx bikes since I was about 7 years old....I had the Auger for a month and it just quit running.  I called Eskimo and they sent me to a small engine repair shop that would supposedly work on it...I drove 45 minutes one way to have the service done and the Service department at that shop didn't know a thing about being a Customer service point for Eskimo... So I drove home, called them and Eskimo customer service gave me a list of 5 more shops...They were a long ways away so I took the time to call all 5 shops...Not a single one knew what I was talking about and said they weren't a customer service point for Eskimo Augers..I called Eskimo Customer service back and she basically called me a liar and said she would call me back...Never happened....I gave up and ended up tearing the Propane "Carb" assy apart myself and ordering new parts from Eskimo.....
When this HC40 and my M43 die it will be a cold day in hell before I will buy another Eskimo product again....

[IceholeFisherman]

I had a Nightmare experience with an Eskimo HC40 and Eskimo's customer service...And it wasn't from abuse..I have been working on and racing 2 stroke and 4 stroke mx bikes since I was about 7 years old....I had the Auger for a month and it just quit running.  I called Eskimo and they sent me to a small engine repair shop that would supposedly work on it...I drove 45 minutes one way to have the service done and the Service department at that shop didn't know a thing about being a Customer service point for Eskimo... So I drove home, called them and Eskimo customer service gave me a list of 5 more shops...They were a long ways away so I took the time to call all 5 shops...Not a single one knew what I was talking about and said they weren't a customer service point for Eskimo Augers..I called Eskimo Customer service back and she basically called me a liar and said she would call me back...Never happened....I gave up and ended up tearing the Propane "Carb" assy apart myself and ordering new parts from Eskimo.....
When this HC40 and my M43 die it will be a cold day in hell before I will buy another Eskimo product again....

Boy that sucks. Is there a list of authorized service centers on their website?

[mboss13]

I had a Nightmare experience with an Eskimo HC40 and Eskimo's customer service...And it wasn't from abuse..I have been working on and racing 2 stroke and 4 stroke mx bikes since I was about 7 years old....I had the Auger for a month and it just quit running.  I called Eskimo and they sent me to a small engine repair shop that would supposedly work on it...I drove 45 minutes one way to have the service done and the Service department at that shop didn't know a thing about being a Customer service point for Eskimo... So I drove home, called them and Eskimo customer service gave me a list of 5 more shops...They were a long ways away so I took the time to call all 5 shops...Not a single one knew what I was talking about and said they weren't a customer service point for Eskimo Augers..I called Eskimo Customer service back and she basically called me a liar and said she would call me back...Never happened....I gave up and ended up tearing the Propane "Carb" assy apart myself and ordering new parts from Eskimo.....
When this HC40 and my M43 die it will be a cold day in hell before I will buy another Eskimo product again....

Sounds like that was a perfect opportunity for a credit card chargeback?

Careful, several people on here might call you out for misusing the product and being too rough with it because you probably wanted to drill some holes in the ice with it!!!

I am shocked how many folks are ok with a product which often gets to be over $400+ potentially breaking and guys just running to hardware store to fix things that should be covered by warranty and spending even more money just for making it work. Isn't that why you paid for the product?
Boys and girls, they are putting cheap Chinese junk parts together and you have their backs and look for misuse because you saw some guys somewhere on a frozen lake not treating their auger as a princess, or someone on youtube yanking their lawn mower too much..........? come on?

Mechanical parts fail, no doubt, but if they fail so much a business has to change their warranty because of it, that's a red flag. How many people can there be that are plotting ripping the cord so they can abuse the heck out of the warranty, or somehow ripping the fuel lines, just so they can use warranty?
They know these parts are crap but they are willing to stick it to the customer riding on a brand name that was hot 20 years ago. I'd say make them earn your business, certainly some horror stories in this thread.

Again, Thank You OP, for a fair warning.

[IceholeFisherman]

Sounds like that was a perfect opportunity for a credit card chargeback?

Careful, several people on here might call you out for misusing the product and being too rough with it because you probably wanted to drill some holes in the ice with it!!!

I am shocked how many folks are ok with a product which often gets to be over $400+ potentially breaking and guys just running to hardware store to fix things that should be covered by warranty and spending even more money just for making it work. Isn't that why you paid for the product?
Boys and girls, they are putting cheap Chinese junk parts together and you have their backs and look for misuse because you saw some guys somewhere on a frozen lake not treating their auger as a princess, or someone on youtube yanking their lawn mower too much..........? come on?

Mechanical parts fail, no doubt, but if they fail so much a business has to change their warranty because of it, that's a red flag. How many people can there be that are plotting ripping the cord so they can abuse the heck out of the warranty, or somehow ripping the fuel lines, just so they can use warranty?
They know these parts are crap but they are willing to stick it to the customer riding on a brand name that was hot 20 years ago. I'd say make them earn your business, certainly some horror stories in this thread.

Again, Thank You OP, for a fair warning.

I agree and disagree... 
One problem is too many companies are being run by bean counters instead of someone who actually cares about the product. It's a double edged sword.  You have to cut labor costs and material costs to make the investors happy. If you are too aggressive doing this, quality suffers and sales drop because customers are not happy.

On the flip side, there is one thing that this country has a severe shortage of.... COMMON SENSE!  And one thing we are not short on.... ENTITLEMENT! This has become a throw away society.  Things are too easily obtained. There is no incentive to take care of your tools. It is much easier to blame someone else (the manufacturers)  for your inability or lack of giving a crap for your own actions or inactions.

How about properly summarizing the auger? What percentage of owners actually do this properly? Then when it has internal rust, gummed up fuel systems, or just plain poor performance, they want action and they want it now. After all. It's not their fault. Or when they just start yanking on the pull rope without preloading it. That's lack of common sense.

Manufacturers have to deal with these types of people on a daily basis. If some of these people would take a minute out of their busy day to read the manuals, there would be far fewer warrantee claims.

As for the fuel lines, it's not they are breaking. They are being deteriorated by ethanol in the gas. Again from stupid people who don't pay attention to the manual and insist on using ethanol gas because it's convenient.  Then blame and bad mouth the manufacturers because they had a problem. Or blame the petrol company because they use ethanol in the first place. I have to tell you.... I have no faith in the human race any more. It seems the more intelligence we perceive ourselves to have, the less sensible we become.

On the flip side of that, manufacturers should anticipate stupid people and use ethanol safe fuel lines and plastic tanks. Or metal parts in the recoul system to take the shock. I hink they were trying to make the unit as light as possible.