I've had my hand augers come "this" close to bottoming out just before they would break through (in years past).
My 6" has a shorter handle, so I was literally kneeling on the ice cutting the last couple inches.
The key for me is to make sure the blades are in top shape so that the cutting is smooth and I'm not having to apply any pressure to get it to cut.
That I learned from the first set of blades. Luckily I wasn't leaning hard enough to warp the base.
I still like to cut by hand, as it gives me a good workout and makes whatever I catch that much more worthwhile...
