6" Nils vs 8" Eskimo Pistol Bit

[Bergy1]

Looking for someone with experience with 6" vs 8" electric augers.

I'm running a Milwaukee Brushless 18 volt.

I ran this on a Clam Plate with a 6" nils for several years.

This year I'm trying a 8" Eskimo Pistol Bit.

I get about 1/3 less holes with the 8" Pistol Bit than I was with the Nils set up. Is this normal going form a 6" to an 8" or is there some loss in efficiency between the Nils and the Pistol Bit?

Looking for someone with actual experience between the two or even 6" to 8" Nils.

Thanks

[hardwater diehard]

What model Milwaukee ? How many in/lbs of torque ? How many ah are your batteries ? The simple math is you are cutting twice as much ice with an 8" auger unit .

[meat sticks]

I don’t have experience with a pistol bit, but I do with a nils and Milwaukee. And I’ve used a standard 8 inch shaver auger of my set up also.  It’s normal to get reduced efficiency when using an 8.  The Nils is already a very efficient auger, and now your switching up to a slightly less efficient style of auger with a larger diameter which means your cutting a lot more ice.  Nothing unusual here!

[FishDoktor]

Some maths  just to show how much more ice you are cutting with an 8 vs a 6.

Assuming the same 10" ice thickness;

6 inch auger - ~283 cubic inches

8 inch auger - ~503 cubic inches

About 1.8 times as much ice you are cutting (someone else also noted this). That along will reduce the number of holes you get. Then you have the cutting head styles which others mentioned as well.

Conventional wisdom I have picked up from others here is that you want at least 100 in/lb of torque for each inch of diameter of your auger. If your M18 doesn't have at least 800 in/lb that could also be affecting your efficiency.

[Bergy1]

So I'm running the M18 2703 with 1,200 in lbs, so I'm good there. I put my 6" nils back on and could pop 40+ holes and get 15, maybe 20 out of my 8" pistol bit. 12" of ice, not that it matters when I'm hitting the same ice with both.

My real question is how does a 6" vs 8" nils or 6' vs 8" pistol bit match up??

Love the weight of the pistol bit for long pulls but man the nils on the clam plates cuts ice!

Thanks for the replies.

[badbrad2186]

So I'm running the M18 2703 with 1,200 in lbs, so I'm good there. I put my 6" nils back on and could pop 40+ holes and get 15, maybe 20 out of my 8" pistol bit. 12" of ice, not that it matters when I'm hitting the same ice with both.

My real question is how does a 6" vs 8" nils or 6' vs 8" pistol bit match up??

Love the weight of the pistol bit for long pulls but man the nils on the clam plates cuts ice!

Thanks for the replies.

Well your trying to cut twice as much ice with the 8inch and you went to a less efficient auger than what you were using.

[kondan]

I've used the 6" and 8" nils trekker with my milwaukee m18 2704. I do get more holes from the 6". With the pistol bit, the flat blades will require more torque from the drill, hence more battery power. Shaver blades like the nils or strikemaster lite flight will use a little less battery due to the pitch of the blades v.s. flat.

[badger132]

As noted below, you will see a significant loss just due to the increased amount of ice you are shaving, as well as decreased efficiency. Your battery is also losing capacity year by year, so depending on how many times you charge it each year, that makes things worse as well. I think you are lucky if you get 2/3 as many this year with the bigger bit.