Mora, K Drill, or Nils?

[Spike]

Let me be clear and I am not a rookie.  I am a lefty and spin it clockwise.  Do the Fins spin it counter clock wise?  I mean it does not bite

[Spike]

Never thought about contacting them.  I will.  Its a beautiful drill to this day.  I thought when it didn't work that I was the fool buying a new product.  Because I think it was when they first came out.  but it just spins with not bite into the ice.

[shiveringjoe]

Are you serious with other direction?  I spin it in the same directions as my Mora which cuts like butter.  Or are you bustin my balls?

I'm just being silly. I have a lazer but when I've used friend's nils they cut very well. Does your nils have the center point or just 2 blades?

[Spike]

Nothing silly here to me.  I am feeling stupid.  I have seen these augers cut with no effort.  I was thinking that being 5'6 I did nit have the leverage.  but that should not come into play .  It is a two blade augar and actually I bought it about 17 years ago.  Has never cut a hole. I remember I paid 70 bucks.  and have been using my Mora before and eve since, with one blade change.  Help!!!

[VTMatt]

Run your nails across both blade edges. Can you feel a "lip" or deformity on either side of the edge?

[waubayrl]

6" Strikemaster Lazor auger with $30 adapter make a lightweight handy auger with any 1/2 drill.  Last week I drilled 10 holes through 22" of ice on one 2 amp battery.   I I used the Gas Auger this weekend - prime, prime, prime, pull, pull, pull, repeat.   Will order an extension for the electric this week.

[Hideebeez]

I have both a 6 and 8 inch nils.  Cannot complain. But I did have to replace the 6 inch blade the day I bought it.  Drilled a hole out by la Platt river nothing but sand in the ice.  That was a 60$ learning curve

[dickbaker]

I am going on 4 years w/a Nils 4.5 inch for perch jerking. I love it !

Same here.  I also have a 6" Nils for bigger fish or more room for my transducer!
Dick

[peteinvermont]

I think I'm on season #4 with my 8" Nils.  I'm ridiculously careful with the blades and I think its paying off.  I cut almost 40 holes last weekend in 12-16" of ice and it still works great.  I might ship the head off this spring to have it sharpened just to be safe, but otherwise, I love the Nils. 

Oh, and I'm spinning it with the 2704 version of the M18 Fuel.  Forty of the 8" holes used half the battery.

[Kilted Brewer]

I use a 6 inch nils and a DeWalt DCD996.  It’s 20 volts max with 5ah lithium ion batteries.

I love this setup.  I did a ton of research before buying and decided that this was the way to go for my particular needs.

I needed light and easy to carry.  I’m always fishing with my sons so I look for places that have lots of action as opposed the biggest fish, so a 6 inch hole is plenty big.  I lug everything a family of four needs on foot, so light and compact was my priority.

They are also only 8... so we aren’t out in bitter cold temps that could have a negative impact on battery life.  I bring two 5ah batteries, but have yet to run down one, typically drilling 20-30 holes in 15 degree of better temps.  If I do go alone, I’m looking for small ponds I have to hike into, so the light and small aspect is still my priority.

I wouldn’t say I baby the blades, but I do put the cover back on immediately after I’m done drilling. 

I plan on ordering an extra cutting head next paycheck so that I always have a fresh one ready to swap out.

I’ve been amazed at the performance of this combination and it’s impressed any one who has tried it.

If your needs are similar to mine, I think you’ll be very happy.

[smelllikefish]

6" Strikemaster Lazor auger with $30 adapter make a lightweight handy auger with any 1/2 drill.  Last week I drilled 10 holes through 22" of ice on one 2 amp battery.   I I used the Gas Auger this weekend - prime, prime, prime, pull, pull, pull, repeat.   Will order an extension for the electric this week.

I can tell you not any 1/2 drill works. Get one that has high torque and batteries that are rated for the cold you're going to be out in. My batteries are rated for 0F because I go out in that and colder.

[varmonter]

i bought the drill adapter for my nils
tried it with an 18 v dewalt. just would not work. so i canned the idea. this nils drills faster than my buddys 10 in jiffy. with really no effort. it's a 6 .
 so i am happy drilling by hand. quiet
and light. anyone want to buy a
strike master 10 inch .? needs some
work..

[dcmod25]

i run a strikemaster  solo powerhead with a k-drill bit. cuts the ice like a hot knife through butter. can even drill with one hand if i wanted to. drilled around 120 holes with it the other day through 16 to 18" of ice and still had a quarter tank of gas. love this set up, weighs in at just under 20lbs full of fuel and dont have to worry about batteries dying on the ice on cold days or carrying extra batteries and keeping them warm!

[Floatman]

Bought the Mini Nero 6” that Lefty recommended.  $70 free shipping from Reeds.  I am impressed.

[VTMatt]

i run a strikemaster  solo powerhead with a k-drill bit. cuts the ice like a hot knife through butter. can even drill with one hand if i wanted to. drilled around 120 holes with it the other day through 16 to 18" of ice and still had a quarter tank of gas. love this set up, weighs in at just under 20lbs full of fuel and dont have to worry about batteries dying on the ice on cold days or carrying extra batteries and keeping them warm!

Youre def one of the few people to prefer gas...I watched a group of guys on wheelers drive across the lake only to not be able to even start their gas auger.

[dcmod25]

ive never had my auger not start. proper maintenance goes a long ways. the chances of my auger not starting and your drill not working are about the exact same.

[Ice Scratcher]

ive never had my auger not start. proper maintenance goes a long ways. the chances of my auger not starting and your drill not working are about the exact same.

I agree, my old Eskimo never failed, still starts great, 28 years, and one sparkplug is all its needed..

I went with a drill auger for weight reasons..

<°)))>{

[jbrown]

Had a friend who said his drill would not work anymore. He somehow reversed the drill. Was going counter clock wise. That only works on southern hemisphere ice. So he moved.

[grampydickg]

Disapointed
12345Disappointed with Nils Auger (from prior model)



February 05, 2018







Here is a review I just posted about the Nils folding 6" hand auger.  I have since used a sharpening stone a put  razor sharp edge and it will cut again but who knows for how long. 
Pros: cuts very fast without much effort
Cons: dulled after about 20 holes
Best Uses: Ice fishing
Comments: I bought this model thinking I would have an auger to last and stay sharp for more that 20 holes all drilled in clean black ice. I was pleased at first at how well it cut, fast and with very little effort. I used it by hand the first few time out then switched to the power drill but drilling was no faster. After drilling a few more holes with power i quit for the day and went home. The next time out I decided to go back to the hand crank but the auger would only scratch the ice and not cut at all like it had before. I had to put the power drill back on so I could put pressure on it to make it cut. The cutting edges still looked sharp with no nicks. I am disappointed that it dulled so quickly.

[Hideebeez]

Disapointed
12345Disappointed with Nils Auger (from prior model)



February 05, 2018







Here is a review I just posted about the Nils folding 6" hand auger.  I have since used a sharpening stone a put  razor sharp edge and it will cut again but who knows for how long. 
Pros: cuts very fast without much effort
Cons: dulled after about 20 holes
Best Uses: Ice fishing
Comments: I bought this model thinking I would have an auger to last and stay sharp for more that 20 holes all drilled in clean black ice. I was pleased at first at how well it cut, fast and with very little effort. I used it by hand the first few time out then switched to the power drill but drilling was no faster. After drilling a few more holes with power i quit for the day and went home. The next time out I decided to go back to the hand crank but the auger would only scratch the ice and not cut at all like it had before. I had to put the power drill back on so I could put pressure on it to make it cut. The cutting edges still looked sharp with no nicks. I am disappointed that it dulled so quickly.

I'm not sure what to make of this.   If you successfully sharpened a nils on the first try I honestly dont believe it.  There is only a hand full of guys that do it in the country.  Explain how you sharpened the blade if you could.

[grampydickg]

The first thing you need is 50 years experience as a machinist/toolmaker a few sharpening stones and a lot of patience.

[Hideebeez]

The first thing you need is 50 years experience as a machinist/toolmaker a few sharpening stones and a lot of patience.

Perfect I have my dad he fits that criteria. What's next?