Clam plate wobbling?

[piersm2]

New to the clam plate and just mounted the 7” Eskimo but on it.  When running it in the air, it is wobbling.  Common since the bit isn’t centered under the plate?

[Mrpike1973]

Mine does the same thing have not had any issues with it.

[Seamonkey84]

Last year there were a few complaints from people who saw it wobble but they worked fine on the ice as long as your balancing the rig while in use. As long as your auger isn’t bent your good to go.
Just avoid the mistakes like having your drill in high speed, and make sure your blades are sharp.

[IceAddict87]

Wait til we get ice. I was worried about mine but once you get in ice it’s fine...

[spoofhoundicefisher]

i was so excited when i bought mine a few years ago i could not wait till ice.  i froze a 5 gallon bucket of ice then ran water over the outside and got the big chunk of ice out and put it up on 4x4 blocks and drilled thru it.  mine would wobble a little as well in the air but as soon as it hits the ice wobble was gone. 

[Ice Scratcher]

Auger bit are not meant for high RPMs, with that said, they are not even close to being balanced. Holding it in the air and running it, makes it appear it's wobbly. But should be totally fine once the other end is kept in place..

<°)))>{

[Mrpike1973]

Quote: i was so excited when i bought mine a few years ago i could not wait till ice.  i froze a 5 gallon bucket of ice then ran water over the outside and got the big chunk of ice out and put it up on 4x4 blocks and drilled thru it.  mine would wobble a little as well in the air but as soon as it hits the ice wobble was gone.

Thanks for the idea i will be doing that as soon as it will freeze

[kondan]

The Clam plate was made for a 6" auger and under. They also made the bearing and shaft tolerance a little bigger, hence the wobble. It is fine when drilling ice. If you want less wobble you could apply some masking/electrical tape to the clam plate shaft to make a snug fit with the auger.

[stinkyfingers]

The Clam plate was made for a 6" auger and under. They also made the bearing and shaft tolerance a little bigger, hence the wobble. It is fine when drilling ice. If you want less wobble you could apply some masking/electrical tape to the clam plate shaft to make a snug fit with the auger.

I had not read before that the Clam plate was designed for 6" and smaller flights. Where did that come from? With the advent of the new generation of high torque drills, a lot of guys , including me, are spinning 8" rigs without issues. I agree that some creative shimming could eliminate the wobble though frankly it's not really an issue in use.

[cropee]

Mine wobbles also i have used mine for 3 years now. When i first notice the wobble i called clam they sent me a new auger attachment. It still wobbles. Its not a problem at all.  I run a 7" mora or 6" lazer on mine and it works great even with a lil wobble as you drill. Heck when you drill by hand you wobble. One thing i have noticed tho is you will occasionally break a lazer blade but not a mora

[Mancaveburnett]

run it, it will work well

[Seamonkey84]

Mine wobbles also i have used mine for 3 years now. When i first notice the wobble i called clam they sent me a new auger attachment. It still wobbles. Its not a problem at all.  I run a 7" mora or 6" lazer on mine and it works great even with a lil wobble as you drill. Heck when you drill by hand you wobble. One thing i have noticed tho is you will occasionally break a lazer blade but not a mora

I’ve had three seasons with my plate/lazer setup, first time I’ve heard of breaking the blades. I have a 7” auger and it can catch bad at breakthrough, but only if I’m not doing my part with supporting the weight of the rig right.

[spoofhoundicefisher]

i have run mine for 3 seasons now and run a 7" sm lazer and have never broke a blade.  did a lot of reading and never knew the clam plates were designed for 6" and under.

[Damn Yankee]

New to the clam plate and just mounted the 7” Eskimo but on it.  When running it in the air, it is wobbling.  Common since the bit isn’t centered under the plate?

If you were in command of a machine shop you could make the extension with about .002 to .004 (That's 2 - 4 1/thousandths of an inch) clearance and they'd run fine. the $15 clam extension you buy has total .020 to .030 clearance so they go together real sloppy. Then the wing screw pushes all the clearance to one side so they wobble a bit. Some quite a bit. They are also made from 2 pieces then welded together. MORE SLOP. If made to tighter tolerances by a competent machinist from quality material you'd be paying $80-$100 for that part.

[Gills-only]

Also never heard or seen a lazer blade break !! Drilled well over a thousand holes over the years !!

[icefish1960]

Mine does the same thing, the wobble stops when you start drilling

[Damn Yankee]

Mine does the same thing, the wobble stops when you start drilling

But watch the videos of the high priced complete augers (Strikemaster $600 Lithium Lazer) when James puts the blade on the ice and starts cutting the WOBBLE moves from the auger blade to the auger motor and his arms.
https://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=strikemaster+lithium+ion+auger&view=detail&mid=9ADCC335A69B00B6B0E79ADCC335A69B00B6B0E7&FORM=VIRE