MY NEW TOY

[ddog]

GOT ME A 10 INC GAS DRILL TODAY FROM BASS PRO  I WANT A 6 INC BUT THEY DID'T HAVE ANY LEFT

[twodaysoff]

You will not regret it!  They are a beautiful thing.  Just save a dollar every time someone tells you you don't need a gas/propane/electric auger in Iowa you'll be upgrading before that one wears out. 

[toofuss]

You wouldn't do without one on brushy right now. There has to be better than 28 inches of ice up there right now.

[grizzwald660]

i bored 2 with a 6" lazer friday night. but i gotta admit . it was easier than digging 3 stuck cars from in front of my house. and i got home about 6:30. the east west roads around brushy are drifting bad.

[ASATMillerbluegill]

I don't want to sound like a downer, but u will HATE the 10" auger. Sloooooow to drill, a size 13 boot can dang near fit in it(ankle breakers) u can lose a flasher or camera down it, plus other items. Only thing a 10" is good for, is sight fishing clear water, like Emerson bay at boji, or pike fishing. I know, cause I got what I thought, was a "Great deal," 4 years ago, when I bought one. Cost me $150 to buy a 6" strike master auger, and put on it. I have the 10" propped in the garage corner, and that is where it sits.

[jumbo chaser]

X2 miller is right I have an 8" and would never have a 10"

[MelroseHawkins]

I'm going with a 6" next. May lose a large catfish if happen to hook, but should be able to get most other fish up the hole. Have an 8 now. No 10 for me.

[toofuss]

I like a 7. its big enough so your transducer float dont take up half the hole but small enough bigger crappies and gills cant get turned around in the hole.

[Huntindave]

I like a 7. its big enough so your transducer float dont take up half the hole but small enough bigger crappies and gills cant get turned around in the hole.

I'm with you on the 7 inch as the size of choice.  I normally pull all my gear and sled out by hand meaning weight is a major issue.  I have owned an OPE  10 inch power auger for years. OPE is the predecessor to Strikemaster. Several years back I decided to upgrade the chipper style auger to a Strikemaster lazer style.  I realized that I could buy a HAND 7 inch auger, make an adapter and run it on my powerhead.

This is quite a bit lighter weight than a standard 8 inch power auger.  Some of the weight reduction comes from the smaller size in comparison to the 8inch, but even more weight is shed due to the difference between the way it is made.  There is less flighting on a auger made for hand use than on an auger made for a powerhead.  On the hand auger, the flighting does not come as far up the shaft as on one made to be used with a powerhead.

By making the adapter, I have the best of both worlds.  A lightweight power auger and I can put the handle back on the actual auger for a backup if my powerhead craps out.  In reality tho, I carry a 6 inch hand auger for a back up.  This guy is getting too old to hand crank anything bigger.

[toofuss]

My hand auger is a 6 laser and there is No way I would go any bigger

[ASATMillerbluegill]

If I was drilling by hand all the time, I'd get a 4 or 5

[Kevin23]

I fished out of a 10" hole once. It was not pleasant. I felt like my flasher was going to go right down the hole. 10" doesn't sound like a big hole until you are sitting above one. I will not fish out of one again! 10" is overkill for Iowa fishing IMO, unless you are chasing carp. Even 8" is pretty big (what my gas auger is), but its still usable.

If you are a panfisherman, you will love the new auger for the first week then wonder why the heck you bought the darn thing. There is no place in Iowa where a 10" auger is needed and its just plain unsafe for community spots.

[Kevin23]

GOT ME A 10 INC GAS DRILL TODAY FROM BASS PRO  I WANT A 6 INC BUT THEY DID'T HAVE ANY LEFT

I'm not seeing any good deals on BPS site for augers. If you paid that price, return it and get one elsewhere.

L&M supply has the mako 10" for $295, shark for $355, 10" lazer mag for $409, and lots of other great deals.. including a 6" lazer mag for $429.98.  and NO TAX!

I bought my 8" mako from them earlier this year for $275. They shipped it that same day and I had it on my door 18 hours from when I ordered.

[MidnightRambler]

5" hand auger for fishing ponds, or anywhere I don't expect to find anything besides panfish. I use the 5" until the ice gets past a foot of depth.
When I have to hike a bit and don't want to lug my power auger the 5" will cut holes even through 20"+ of ice easily enough, so long as the blades are sharp and I don't need to drill more than three holes.

7" hand auger for fishing walleye and Northern on thinner ice. It cuts through a foot or so of ice just fine with sharp blades.

8" power auger for thick ice like we have now even in southern Iowa. Mine came with the 8" auger, but I plan on getting a 6" or 7" for it one of these years.

I have to agree that unless you are planning on fishing for lake trout (not many of those in Iowa) or muskie through the ice on a regular basis, you do not need, or want, a 10" auger.

[ASATMillerbluegill]

I forgot to mention that a child as old as 5-6, could fall down thru the hole

[Iceaholic]

X2 on the 10" auger.  If you wanted a 6", wait and get exactly what you want.  You'll have it for 25+ years.  I bought a strikemaster 7" off a guy that was moving to Arizona for $150 he used 4 times.  Talk about right place/right time    7" is perfect size especially if you get in 18" crappie or a big bass. 

[blufloyd]

google up powerheads  then after you get one for way less than $200 get your machinist to make adaptor for your hand auger.



5 inch 33 cc $125 invested.

[Joboo2334]

You forgot to mention how wet your feet get. NO 10 INCH for me.

[Shack man Shoney]

My eskimo gas is a 8" but i would rather run my drill with the 7" I dont really notice much fishable difference between the 7" and 8" holes. I can't ever imagine me needing a 10" hole in the ice.... In the general chit chat archives of the site a member had posted maximum fish girth per hole size. It takes a considerable fish to not fit a 7" or 8" hole... I guess if I ever hook a 6 lb bluegill im going to be wishing for a 10" hole then...... lol!!!

[catmandude]

Keep the blades sharp and you'll be fine. I had a ten inch for two years and it wasn't my favorite but boy did it beat hand drilling. If i would have had a 5 or 6 inch blade I don't think that the 7 lb walleye i caught this weekend would have fit, not to mention the 10.5 lb walleye pulled out last year by my buddy. 7" would be as small as I'd go in iowa. Perfect for everyday fishing and could fit a fat walleye. ... hopefully

[ASATMillerbluegill]

My buddy's bro in law pulled a 12 lb eye through the ice 3 yrs ago on brushy, thru a 6" hole:-D I've seen the mount.

[catmandude]

Yea I've seen big things come through small Holes  ;)be easier coming through a 8!

[ASATMillerbluegill]

Yea, well I've seen big thing go in small holes, so there:) hope your fishing is good today!

[toofuss]

Yea, well I've seen big thing go in small holes, so there:) hope your fishing is good today!

Now don things are getting deep around here LMAO

[ASATMillerbluegill]

Lol! Is like to hear from op on whether he kept the auger, or returned it.

[Oldbear]

Ddog now I know why you PM'd me.  Glad you got a gas one with all this ice this year.  I've got a 5" hand auger for early and late ice and a 8" gas lazer mag express for the thicker stuff.

[jumbo chaser]

X2 miller I've always enjoyed big things going into small holes 

[CPace]

You will enjoy your new toy!!  Will save the shoulder, back and elbow from all that stress the hand drills will cause on you!!  Us older guys started out (correct me if I'm wrong, but I'd bet most of us) with a "spoon" style hand drill!  I had mine until a few years a go and sold it to a guy who collects old fishing stuff!  i got it from my uncle, and it was a used one he had had for a few years! My shoulders and elbows were starting to pay for every ice fishing trip I embarked on, so I bought a used Lazer electric, has the 7 inch auger, and I still keep my 7 inch hand drill for a back up or when I'm fishing a small pond with thinner ice, early in the season.  My old electric will bore 10-12 holes in 16+ inch ice, no problem, with "juice" to spare.  I haven't had opportunity to need to drill more than that any time I've been out, so can't say how many holes it will drill, for sure!  Your gas model will only be limited by how much gas you have with you!!   If you decide that the 10 inch is too big, just get smaller auger shaft and hook it to your power unit!  Congratulations!!! Toys, ya got'a love 'em!!!

[Iowafarmer2014]

Bought a 10 inch last year, love it! When its 10 to 25 below I then take the 8 inch the next day and then the 6 inch the next day. Only have to drill new hole every third day. But i loose lot less 5lbs fish in the 10 inch. 8 inch does great but when the fish are hooking lite i do lose some in the 6 incher!!! This only works if the fish haven,t moved.