Clam Drill Plate vs Vexilar K Drill

[DFresh75]

Guys - I'm finally done with wasting time with finicky augers, and 30lbs of weight.

Ideally, I would like to stick around 10lbs for an auger setup.  I read a ton of the boards, and it sounds like regardless of K-Drill or Clam Plate and different bits, I the top tier is the Milwaukee Fuel 18v, followed by the DeWalt 20v both brushless, both LiIon.

My only concern is here sometimes on Lake Minnetonka you can run into 30" of ice.  If I need to drop $275 on a Drill I will.

Just curious if the K Drill is as good as it looks, or if its basically a commodity vs my 6" bit from my old Strikemaster and a Clam Drill Plate (newer model so I don't have to remove a chuck)

[ML Crappie King]

Hey DFresh75....here's what I posted on another thread:   Did my due diligence.  I wanted a K-Drill so started shopping.  Most of the stores had the Milwaukee M18 half inch drill for $299.  It had 750#'s of torque, came with 2 4amp batts, a charger and the case.  I found a deal....An M18 half inch drill with 1200#'s of torque, 2 5amp batts, plus and extra 4amp batt, the charger and the case, and an extra 1/4 inch hex impact drill...all for the same price of $299.   The K-drill auger bits were $249.  Found one at the Blaine Hard Water Expo for $217 with no tax or shipping.  Plan on using the drill mainly for making a spearing hole and then reopening old angling holes in permanent shack.  Can't wait for hard water to try it out.  Don't know if this will make you think about another option or not.   Just my 2cents.

[DFresh75]

Which Milwaukee has 1200lbs?

[IFF]

Usually I only see about 24" of ice here, haven't had to look for an extension for my K-Drill.  I believe the Milwaukee M-18 Brushless hammer drill has the higher torque.  Don't think the torsion handle is included ?  But available as an accessory piece. The pitch of the spiral is designed with the drill speed rather than how much torque is involved. 

[Agronomist_at_IA]

Guys - I'm finally done with wasting time with finicky augers, and 30lbs of weight.

Ideally, I would like to stick around 10lbs for an auger setup.  I read a ton of the boards, and it sounds like regardless of K-Drill or Clam Plate and different bits, I the top tier is the Milwaukee Fuel 18v, followed by the DeWalt 20v both brushless, both LiIon.

My only concern is here sometimes on Lake Minnetonka you can run into 30" of ice.  If I need to drop $275 on a Drill I will.

Just curious if the K Drill is as good as it looks, or if its basically a commodity vs my 6" bit from my old Strikemaster and a Clam Drill Plate (newer model so I don't have to remove a chuck)

Basically to have a setup that works well here is what you need to turn 8in augers or less.

1st Get a brushless drill & make sure it is 700in/lbs + torque.
2nd About any hand auger or drill auger setup will work. Just have sharp blades.
3rd Most setups are short without an extension. Get an extension.
4th Batteries should be lithium ion type with 4ah + to get decent numbers holes. (Some brands like Milwaukee have really good insulated batteries and built for durability.)
5th If you plan to reopen holes the Kdrill or an auger with a guide point is better.

I've ran a 7in shaver, 7in lazer, 8in nils on a clam plate with a Milwaukee brushless fuel with 725in/lbs of torque on a clan plate. Never had a problem and get about 30 or so holes with the 8in on 2ft of ice. Batteries are 4ah. I picked up a used nils cutting head with a power point to try for reopening holes.

I've been really happy with the setup. Light weight, no trying to get it started, no fuel spills.....oh and did I say it is super light.

The two drills I would look at today are the Mikita or Milwaukee they both are built well and over 1100in/lbs of torque.

[DFresh75]

Thanks Agro.  I'll shoot for 700lbs min.  After that it sounds like it's a commodity

[ICEHOLE]

Ridgid X5 brushless just came out with 750 torque and a lifetime service agreement on tool and batteries.. I got the x4 (not brushless/ 700lbs) and I burnt out two of them before sitting on the store credit and waiting for brushless... the 4x was flawless with an 8" auger until we got over a 1' ice
now I am just waiting to try out my new x5 brushless to see if it will perform better then x4. I couldn't get myself to pay 280 for a drill with a 2 year warranty even if it is better. I don't care if I break mine, I know ill just get a new one

[DFresh75]

So I love the Ridgid warranty but that sounds like an unreliable problem.  Might have to go Milwaukee

[frmboybuck]

Which Milwaukee has 1200lbs?

2704-22 is the hammer drill
2703-22 is the non hammer version. Same drill without the hammer function.

[Monticatgeek]

Dfresh75,

you can get the k-drill right from Vexilar and they sell a adapter so you can hook it to the clam plate. but on that note the clam plate with a 995 dewalt and a 6 inch auger(metal) only weighs in at 14 pounds (this is what I run). the k-drill only cuts about 2 or 3 pounds off the total weight. also the k drills are not true 6 or 8 inch drills. the 6 is actually like 5 1/2 inches and the 8 is like 7 1/2 inches.

[greenhornet1]

here is something to think about.  milw. has a warranty on the battery.  you will and I say will get a free battery at some point.  this is a savings to you.  my ice partner has been given 2 free so far. use's drill in summer for a tool and you know the rest.

[ML Crappie King]

DFresh75........the half inch drill I got in the Milwaukee kit is the 2704-20 which has up to 1200 lbs torque.  It came with the side handle also.

[flatironfisherman]

The K drill concept is great, but it's quite pricey.  I'm still going with the Clam plate.

[MrE1979]

Personally if I was gonna switch to a drill setup I would go for the 28v Milwaukee.  Has 750lbs of torque but is made to drill larger holes than the 18v.

[Deal Ninja]

A month ago I purchased the Milwaukee 2704-22, the new Clam plate and the K-Drill to the tune of about $650.  Really hope the combo lives up to all the hype.  Can't wait to try it and offer a review.

[Monticatgeek]

A month ago I purchased the Milwaukee 2704-22, the new Clam plate and the K-Drill to the tune of about $650.  Really hope the combo lives up to all the hype.  Can't wait to try it and offer a review.

did you remember to order the adapter for the k drill from vexilar to hook it to the clam plate. it will not hook to the plate without this adapter.

[iceman10]

I don't understand why you would want the clam plate ? I watched the video of K-drill with Milwaukee fuel and it came in at 8lbs total , I don't see any advantage of carrying the extra clam plate weight ?

[luv2fish2]

easier to control if something stops that auger i know i had a 6" k drill when i upsized to an 8" i got a clam plate , yes with 750in lb milwaulkee hammer drill love my setup no going back just might have to get a bigger battery ( 9ah) got 4 ah now (2) never ran out yet but don't drill over 30 holes a day

[iceman10]

Ok if the K-drill works as stated , I was planning on a 6" bit without a clam plate and if I wanted a bigger hole for a tip-up  I would overlap the holes as in the video . I am not trying to ruffle anyone feathers , but I see no reason for a clam plate . I guess if there ever is a control problem I could buy one later , I just thought it was designed not to grab or catch at the end of the hole ? Anyone here ever used one without a plate attachment ? Thanks

[luv2fish2]

yeah used both you can run either with or without if i were running a 6" i probably wouldn't have gotten a plate that's how I started out.   but a thankful gift card to Bass Pro got me one. so much easier and convenient to use and lay the drill down on the ice. but, its a personal preference. easier for me. I just had shoulder surgery. lol.

[MochaMay]

I have ran my K-drill 8" for two years using the Mil 18vlt just like in the video. I also see "0" need for a Clam plate.
The k-drill works great up to about 14" of ice and it still works great with thicker ice but at that point I want to drill holes at a faster rate and I switch to my Strikemaster but then again we do have quite a few days where we will drill 100+ holes.

[iceman10]

Thanks for your input Mochamay !

[Fisherman-Andy]

I have ran my K-drill 8" for two years using the Mil 18vlt just like in the video. I also see "0" need for a Clam plate.
The k-drill works great up to about 14" of ice and it still works great with thicker ice but at that point I want to drill holes at a faster rate and I switch to my Strikemaster but then again we do have quite a few days where we will drill 100+ holes.

Let me play a little devils advocate.  And this is from just my experience, others may differ.    I use 6",7",8" lazer and kdrill 8".  I'm not a specifically tall guy at 5'5".   I have had considerable time of use  with just using cordless drill and adapter to ice bit.  I have drilled in varied ice thickness from 6"-30"+.    You will experience issues with drilling a leveled straight hole, strain from wrist due to torque, and safety concerns shall while drilling an ice hole and it seizes up, stops, or catches at bottom.  With high torque cordless drills this can cause you to lose balance, sprain your wrist, fall and cause injury.   Adding a clam plate can go a long way in adding some stability and address at least some of those safety concerns.  The extra weight 5lbs is next to not noticeable.  I never get fatigue or feel the weight from the clam plate conversion.  But I do feel wrist strain from using just a cordless drill/adapter with the ice bit.

[wirenut45]

I use the clam plate, milw. drill, mora 6 " auger assy. and have had the d**n auger break thru, apperently leaving a ridge or whatever on the bottom of the hole. anyway, before i could  let go the trigger, the auger had me down on the ice. the clam was tite to the ice, ,n, i was on my knees or flat on my face. have any of you had this happen? only done it a few times, but has me "gunshy" if you know what i mean. don,t know answer, but , i epoxyed (?) a bullseye level to the  plate. do you think this will help , or is there something else i,m doing wrong?

[ICEHOLE]

never had a problem with my mora 6" or 8" grabbing at the bottom. IMO plate is useless apart from the "load bearing" which may do nothing...idk.  the side arms that come with the drills don't do a whole lot either. broke my ridged side arm within first 5 minutes of ice just tightening onto the drill.

[joshd]

Good info here guys. I use drill plate with dewalt 995 and wondering if you feel the K drill 8 " is the best setup for redrilling holes?

I use 7" Lazer and am having issues with it getting caught at bottom. Doable but not a good setup for perm.

I also made an adapter to use 8" chipper magnum auger and I do not like how hard it makes the drill work.

Thanks!

[Damn Yankee]

Not using the Clam Plate will eventually lead to the side arm shearing off the lug on your drill.
6" drills, Fin-Bore, Lazer, Mora or Nils no problem.
7" Lazer will tear off the lug after 50 to 100 holes.
7" Mora needs the plate as the drill catches at break-thru as does the Lazer.
8" K-drill actually cuts a 7½" diameter hole. Clam Plate makes using the drill/auger much more user friendly with all of the 8" augers. Fin-Bore,
K-drill,Lazer, Mora, Nils,Strike-Lite.
All of the 8" drills work best with the second generation Milwaukee M-18 1200"# drill or the Makita XPH07.

[joshd]

What do you mean by tear off the lug? I have the newest clam plate where you do not have to remove the chuck.

Thanks!

Not using the Clam Plate will eventually lead to the side arm shearing off the lug on your drill.
6" drills, Fin-Bore, Lazer, Mora or Nils no problem.
7" Lazer will tear off the lug after 50 to 100 holes.
7" Mora needs the plate as the drill catches at break-thru as does the Lazer.
8" K-drill actually cuts a 7½" diameter hole. Clam Plate makes using the drill/auger much more user friendly with all of the 8" augers. Fin-Bore,
K-drill,Lazer, Mora, Nils,Strike-Lite.
All of the 8" drills work best with the second generation Milwaukee M-18 1200"# drill or the Makita XPH07.

[Chute82]

Couple years ago my buddies gas auger died few days before our trip to Canada.  Gas auger was 20+ years old.  So he got the attachment for his Dewalt 18v  and used his 8in laser auger.  First hole drilling through 2 1/2 to 3 feet of ice worked great , second hole the drill caught fire about half way down.  So we hand augered for two days before the second part of our group showed up with a Power auger. 

[Damn Yankee]

What do you mean by tear off the lug? I have the newest clam plate where you do not have to remove the chuck.

Thanks!

The post was intended to show what happens when you use the side arm only.
The side arm is not used with any of the Clam Plates.