Does your Lazer auger catch at the bottom of the hole?

[Clear_Ice]

Hey everyone. It seems to me that with both my 6" lazer hand auger and my dad's 8" lazer electra auger, the blades always catch when you get to the bottom of the hole and it about rips your arms off. Does this happen to anyone else, and if so, what's your solution?

Thanks!

CI

[3300]

when new and for a few years after it did not. then it started to do it until i replaced the blades. one was catching.
for now, lift up just before breaking thru all of the way and order up some new ones. then send in the old for resharps.

just thought of some thing. the mounting holes for the blades are not round so they are meant to be adjusted. loosen them both and try resetting them and see if that helps too. try moving the screw so it holds the most amount of pressure when twisted or all of the way to the back of the stops of the holes. could try a few ways on ice to see what works.
after changing mine i noticed this and made it so the screws shafts would stop the blades from moving rather than the screw heads.

[Kevin23]

Totally normal.

[buz23]

Yeah, you want to make sure your trigger doesn't stick, otherwise you will find yourself on your knees with the auger wanting to head to the bottom occasionally.

Once I know how thick the ice is, I can gauge when it is near the bottom and pull up slightly.  If you look at the hole after you are done, you will often see a wedge of ice on one side that didn't get cleared at the bottom of the hole.  That's what the flighting catches on.  I think the lazer blades are so aggressive the ice breaks at the bottom instead of cutting clear through, and that's the problem.  I can live with it.

[hardwater diehard]

Yep almost always ...

[Clear_Ice]

Alrighty, thanks guys. I have been just pulling up before punching through, and it works but I wanted to see if you all had any way to fix the problem forever. I have the swedish blades, and not the chinese ones. I checked.

Thanks everyone!

CI

[cyclones30]

We fished with 2 6" lazer hand augers this past weekend. Mine never catches on the bottom (brand new swedish blades) and his caught just about every time. (brand new that day)  Might need a little adjusting mine very rarely if ever catches, but using his it does it often.

[tomturkey]

I bopught a used 5 inch lazer this morning. I went out and cut a couple of hoes with it to test it out. It did seem to catch a little when it broke through the ice but not enough to be a major problem.

[bowhtr]

it will happen if you push down on the auger.  you shouldn't have to push at all if your blades are sharp.

[Kevin23]

Its the blade design, the way it cuts ice. Smaller the hole the less it will grab, but it will always hang up at the bottom. If it doesn't, you've got a magic lazer.

If you don't want hangups then get a mora, they go through without you even knowing you were close.

[Townie]

X2 most holes. I hit reverse on the cordless when i feel resistance   & go easy. 6" lazer-- new blades too.

[aulee42]

my 6" lazer does not catch at all. I love it. I just got another auger and havent had a chance to put it on my clam plate to see if it will catch or not

[Trout Sen-Sei]

I have a new 6inch hand lazer that is catching on the bottom 1inch of the hole every time. It cuts fine from start to near punch through--then binds up almost tight. Only cut maybe 15holes with it. Screws are tight on blades and everything seems ok but same problem. Anybody have a suggestion or should I call Strikemaster?

[buz23]

If you have very sharp blades you should not have to put any weight on a lazer auger.  I saw a U-tube video and the guy was leaning on his auger for all he was worth.  When you do this, the auger will break through when it gets near the bottom and that's when it catches.  I've pretty much got the technique down for my clam plate lazer - and it doesn't catch very often now.  But I'm glad I freed up the trigger so I can quit drilling quick when it does catch.

[lostlunker]

I have a new 6inch hand lazer that is catching on the bottom 1inch of the hole every time. It cuts fine from start to near punch through--then binds up almost tight. Only cut maybe 15holes with it. Screws are tight on blades and everything seems ok but same problem. Anybody have a suggestion or should I call Strikemaster?

Both of my lazers have done this and I don't put any weight on the auger so I think it is normal. I usually just back it out a little and do short little chips to bust through the rest of the ice I've heard people have damaged the handle side of the shaft trying to power through it. I modded some old Mora offset handles on to my lazer and it seems to chip through a little better and also cut a lot faster. I think I read that the new synthetic augers don't bind at all so who knows if it is the blade pitch or what.

[Poot]

My 8" Strike Lite catches. Machine runs real nice but it's quite annoying actually and I might try new blades. But, I have found I have the best luck if I just let the drill do the work and really don't put any downward pressure. Then, when you feel it breaking thru don't let it and it will usually make a nice clean bottom.

I saw some mention that the mounting screw holes are not round...I'll have to look at that.

[Seamonkey84]

I have a 7" hand auger and it catches on the bottom before punching through. It becomes hard to fisnish the hole at times, especially tired from drilling several holes.
There are also several ledges of ice in the hole that I have to back out of in reverse before punching it down through them to clear the hole.

[Clear_Ice]

After trying several different things over the next week, I guess that the best way to stop this issue is to just not put any downward force on the drill at all, and as you can start to guess that you are about to break through, give it just the slightest amount of upward pull to slow down how fast it is cutting.. if that makes any sense.

I guess that is what I have found now after heeding some of your advice..

Thanks everyone!

CI

[lefty2053]

It isn't just the Lazer Augers. My Eskimo Silvertip doe the same thing.

[GRCrappieCrusher]

So does my Fin-Bore III

[Fisherman-Andy]

The catching or binding at bottom is starting to get annoying, worse if your blades are dulling.  If the blades are real sharp still the binding should be really minimal and bearable at least.

Time to swap to the mora blues.  Too bad they dont make a 7" Nils.

[buz23]

Here's a tip I found helps avoid problems at the bottom of a hole when using Clam/Lazer combo.  Brace the left side of the plate against your left leg as it gets set to break through.  Seems to power right through.  If you are holding it loosely then it will grab.

[Clear_Ice]

Here's a tip I found helps avoid problems at the bottom of a hole when using Clam/Lazer combo.  Brace the left side of the plate against your left leg as it gets set to break through.  Seems to power right through.  If you are holding it loosely then it will grab.

I don't use t
he clam plate, otherwise that seems like a good idea!

[Agronomist_at_IA]

The catching or binding at bottom is starting to get annoying, worse if your blades are dulling.  If the blades are real sharp still the binding should be really minimal and bearable at least.

Time to swap to the mora blues.  Too bad they dont make a 7" Nils.

Why not just use the 8in nils? An 8inch nils cuts smoother and easier then a 7in lazer.

[Fisherman-Andy]

Why not just use the 8in nils? An 8inch nils cuts smoother and easier then a 7in lazer.

That would be in question, how many holes can you cut with the 8" Nils vs the 7" lazer?  Battery life is more important to me as I move frequently.

[matzilla]

byproduct of the blades and cutting angle - if you finesse it about 3/4 the way through it wont bite as hard

[Agronomist_at_IA]

That would be in question, how many holes can you cut with the 8" Nils vs the 7" lazer?  Battery life is more important to me as I move frequently.

I never checked, but when I cut with my 7in lazer you can just feel how much power it takes, my nills It barely seems to work the drill. If you are sick of the hang up (which I was espically if you drill consecutive holes) with the lazer, you'll love the nils. It just cuts smooth has silk all the way through. I never had a hang up with it yet. I was skeptical of the nils and claims others made about it, but they were right on. One of the best augers on the market. Now, I will comment that the "lazer" auger I have is a 7in eskimo shaver with the aluminum block kit which allows you to put the lazer blades on the auger. I will give the lazer credit. It bites hard and rips through the ice crazy fast, it just sucks having the thing hang up.

[Fisherman-Andy]

I never checked, but when I cut with my 7in lazer you can just feel how much power it takes, my nills It barely seems to work the drill. If you are sick of the hang up (which I was espically if you drill consecutive holes) with the lazer, you'll love the nils. It just cuts smooth has silk all the way through. I never had a hang up with it yet. I was skeptical of the nils and claims others made about it, but they were right on. One of the best augers on the market. Now, I will comment that the "lazer" auger I have is a 7in eskimo shaver with the aluminum block kit which allows you to put the lazer blades on the auger. I will give the lazer credit. It bites hard and rips through the ice crazy fast, it just sucks having the thing hang up.

I scored a good deal on an Nils 8" Actic Trekker auger.  It's seems really heavy even with some of the extension parts taken off.  To my surprise the Clam extension fits right in without modification or an adapter needed.

Don't know if I will use it cause it just feels way too heavy compare to my 7" lazer.

[Agronomist_at_IA]

Try it once can't hurt. Is that the blue one? I have the blue hand nils with a reddish head. Not sure what the difference is.

[Fisherman-Andy]

Try it once can't hurt. Is that the blue one? I have the blue hand nils with a reddish head. Not sure what the difference is.

It's the Nils arctic trekker version.  Here is the photo of the clam extension connected to the Nils.  There is minor play as expected but nothing a little masking tape or electrical tape can't resolve.  I did the same thing on my lazer bit and now minimal or no wobble.