new battery powered auger

[touge30]

shopping for new 8 inch auger iyo whats the best

[mdougla1]

shopping for new 8 inch auger iyo whats the best

Absolutely love my ion 40v. 

[SchrnLker]

Another vote for Ion.  After about 8 years I finally bought a new battery.

[FishGameHunter]

Eskimo pistol bit with a good drill, cant beat it..

[Beekeeper1099]

I have my strike master laser 8" hooked up to an ice kicker 2 powered by a 20 volt DeWalt hammer drill. It is a bit heavy but the gear reduction takes all the load off the drill. Going on 3 years and it works great.

[greensider]

Just got the strike master 24 amp 8 inch drilled 30 holes in 16 inches of ice first time out no problem. And was still going full bore. Love it so far

[2muchleft]

I got the strike master last year also and use with a rigid 18V 6 amp battery.  Works great.

[Jake1]

Eskimo pistol bit with a good drill, cant beat it..

100% agree its light as a feather compared to the ION, I got an ION to replace the gas which I just loved until I got hooked on the pistol bit it totally outperforms my ION for speed as well as battery life

[fellinonce]

First year with the strikemaster 24v 8” and it’s been great. Time will tell about battery but haven’t killed it yet. Soooo much better and lighter  than gas

[fellinonce]

First year with the strikemaster 24v 8” and it’s been great. Time will tell about battery but haven’t killed it yet. Soooo much better and lighter  than gas

[Iceman1899]

100% agree its light as a feather compared to the ION, I got an ION to replace the gas which I just loved until I got hooked on the pistol bit it totally outperforms my ION for speed as well as battery life

X2 love my 8” pistol bit. Very light and takes up little room. I run a Bosch drill 18volt 4amp battery Most holes i think I punched in a day is about 30 in roughly 12” of ice and still had half life left. Two suggestions if you go with one of them you need a brushless drill and never drill a hole halfway threw the ice so it hold itself up like you see guys do with gas augers. My first day out with it I did that and it frozen in solid. Made of plastic so I didn’t wanna horse on it and smash it to a million pieces. Took me quite a while to chip it out with my spud lol

[62&done]

I got the strike master last year also and use with a rigid 18V 6 amp battery.  Works great.

   I have this 6" set up 3 years and no complaints   was out looking for a certain piece of structure this week and drilled at least 40 holes thru 12" with no problem   changed battery because I just didn't want to kill it   would buy the same setup again    A friend has an Ion and is equally happy with his   Just depends on how much $ you want to part with

[KeukaZ71]

I have the 8" orange Nails with a DeWalt 20v hammer drill 4ah battery. Had it for many years. Works great. Battery lasts all day. Never had one die. My buddy got the same drill but uses a strike master Lazer lite flite. I actually like the strike master better after trying his. Lighter and less torque and wear on my drill.

[SwampRat]

Hard to beat the Strikemaster lithium 40v, I have 2 gas augers if anyone wants them

[BillyGoat]

Drill
Milwaukee 18M fuel brushless hammer drill 5.0 lithium comes with 2 batteries I payed 320 for drill at runnings.
Bit
K-Drill  u can drill out old hole from previous days, drill 2 holes that make 1 without sticking or hanging up . I payed 190 at runnings.
Keep it clean of ice and slush after u use it.

[BeenPerchin315]

Another vote for Ion.  After about 8 years I finally bought a new battery.

Got another for the ion. I’ve had mine since they came out over a decade ago and still going strong. Couldn’t tell ya about the battery it was stolen with some other fishing gear at one point.
Also I use a dewalt 997 when I want to be light. Once I’m to 10/12” ice the battery starts to over heat when you get to the bottom of the second hole and I normally run 3 holes. Good luck. O yea that dewalt runs the ion auger bit. With the extension.

[regulator]

For the last 2 seasons I've been using a Kobalt 24V brushless drill (650 in lbs) with a 2AH battery, coupled with a 6" Strikemaster Lazer. Can't punch a lot of holes with it, but I drilled a dozen or so in 16" of black ice last weekend. $99 for the drill, $89 for the augur, $10 for the adapter.

[kautz88]

Nils 8in is the best but I also have the Kdrill 8.5in and it’s awesome to and light just not steel

[conesusguysouth]

8" pistol bit all day long. super light weight drills fast, 2 years on it and zero complaints

[clmiller]

How do your 8" pistol augers handle 25" of ice, no problem with the 8" Ion.

[Flyingmaggot]

Strikemaster lite-flite with a dewalt. I walk a lot and drill a lot.  I still have a gas auger,  but I never bother to use it anymore. 

In my opinion,  the electric auger is a waste. They are only a few pounds lighter than the gas models unless you buy the top end(which still weighs more than drill/auger).     Buy a quality hammer drill and the attachment. You will at least be able to use the drill the rest of the year.

I have my preference of drill, and everybody does. Get the one you like and run it. It's gonna work and work well.  It truly will amaze you how many holes you get out of one battery. Yes, even with more than 12" of ice lol

[conesusguysouth]

well we dont really get 25" where im at but im sure it would do just fine. ive drilled 14" and no issues and lots of holes

[river_scum]

im not sure why they still making such things.  a drill and auger is all you need now days.  the drill you can use all year.  what you do you use a 500$ ice auger for the rest of the year?  just buy a good drill and adapter.   

[62&done]

im not sure why they still making such things.  a drill and auger is all you need now days.  the drill you can use all year.  what you do you use a 500$ ice auger for the rest of the year?  just buy a good drill and adapter.

   True   Very true

[conesusguysouth]

yeah pistol bit was affordable and i use the drill in my shop. i dont see the need for a dedicated unit in nys. maybe someplace with 36" all the time

[Yotecatcher]

My Ryobi 18v hammer drill with a 4amp hr battery wrks fine for me I can cut 20 holes with a single charge I carry a extra battery just in case I need it. It's attached to a 6inch Mora augar. Been using it for 4yrs now. I guess it's personal preference for everyone. 

[Adironzach]

If you want to run a cordless, The eskimo pistol (8") bit works great for my friends. I have a kdrill (8.5") and i think the eskimo drills a bit faster. Kdrill is a bit lighter tho. Overall i dont see much of a difference between either, whatever youre more comfortable with there. You'll need at least a 5A to last you all day though. If im really bouncing with a lot of ice, ive noticed ill need a second battery. Just keep the batteries from getting too cold and the charge should last fine all day.

If you want to go with a lithium, both the ion and strikemaster have gotten positive reviews from those i know that has them. New ions are noticeably lighter but definitely more expensive. Havent seen a side by side to compare how quickly they drill. Both friends with them never have had their drill battery die when bouncing around all day. I know yesterday i probably drilled ~40 holes moving around throughout the day with 12"+ of ice and their drill (strikemaster) was still kicking strong.