# Your thoughts on auger



## Rainman68 (Apr 29, 2011)

shawnfire said:


> i too have the strike master lazer 8 in and so far it stays at home...... batt life going on 2 yrs and how much gas have you spent at 3.75 gal i was going thru 2 gals a yr sometime 3 and after oil that would be 15-20 a yr


That must be some expenssive oil you are using....

I've never bought gas at 3.75 for my auger. I have about 12 gallons in purchased at 3.07 in the fall. If you want to average the cost over the years it was cheap back then

What's the price of a L-Ion battery for replacement, I'm thinking around $75 for a decent one. How many years will it last? Plus the cost and time to recharge it.


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## downriverbob (Jan 22, 2009)

Bought a Jiffy Propane last year no smoke no mixing gas. Plenty of power starts 1st or 2nd pull every time.

BOB


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## shawnfire (Nov 5, 2005)

mine is the same batt as a fish finder 9amp 12 volts $22... i only ran premium gas which is recommended and strike master oil. only bought 1 gal at a time old gas never seemed to work well 30 days top for age with sea foam added ...... and right now gas is even more and it will only keep going up


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## Crayfish Trapper (Dec 19, 2010)

Rainman68 said:


> That must be some expenssive oil you are using....
> 
> I've never bought gas at 3.75 for my auger. I have about 12 gallons in purchased at 3.07 in the fall. If you want to average the cost over the years it was cheap back then
> 
> What's the price of a L-Ion battery for replacement, I'm thinking around $75 for a decent one. How many years will it last? Plus the cost and time to recharge it.


Sealed Lead Acid replacement battery cost $22 on Amazon.

Lithium ion replacement battery costs $150


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## stillfish (Dec 5, 2005)

Im going with Electric!! When i can afford it!!


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## lookinfopike (Dec 21, 2005)

First off I would not throw money away buy buying a cordless drill unless I was building a deck or hanging drywall. There are more threads on trouble shooting drill augers than saying how great they are. Keep your tools in the tool box where they belong. Besides the drills that work the best are not cheap. With all the accessories to make the drill work properly the price is close to the same as a powered auger. Buy the time you purchase the drill, extra battery, choosing the proper adapter to make it work. And I have yet to see any of the top drill manufacturers offer a ice auger of any kind. Gas augers are messy, they stink, they have to warm up, pull cords break, they foul plugs, you have to mix the gas, unless you have a propane powered then you have to deal with tanks, they are annoying especially at night. For every good thing about gas augers there are five bad. Besides that the electrics will walk circles around gas. Bite the bullet and buy something thats proven. The fastest cutting power auger on the market is the ICEGATOR in either the LI-ION or lead acid battery and the LI-ION model weighs only 19lbs. Compared to the JIFFY propane at 43lbs. I would put either ICEGATOR against any other auger on the market gas or electric. I have cut over 90 8" holes in 12"+ of ice and still had enough juice left for the next day. And that was with the lead acid battery. ICEGATOR eats up 5 inches of ice per second. 375 RPM for the LI-ION 350 RPM for the lead acid batteries. Compare that to the ION that only hits 200 RPM and the Strikemaster that only puts out 90 RPM. ICEGATOR charges quickly too. You can charge at home, car charger, or run it off your sled, quad or truck directly. I was given the ICEGATOR LI-ION for a Christmas gift. So now I am going to sell my 2012 lead acid ICEGATOR PM me if you are interested. After using the ICEGATOR for two seasons problem free I would not waste time or money on anything else. I am sure if you had ever used one you would feel the same. Not to mention they stand behind there product 100% and they are made in the USA. Now that I have successfully pissed every gas, propane and little electric drill auger owners off with my opinion. Feel free to jump in and tell me yours is better and why. And hey, if I see you on the ice line em up and lets race. Watch the video link below and check it out. Its the fastest over the counter auger on the market you can buy.


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## busybeaver (Apr 7, 2006)

The only reason I wouldn't buy electric is longevity. The batteries definitely will need to be replaced a lot sooner than a good gas or propane motor not to mention the actual electric motor. I don't see it lasting nearly as long. With li ion battery prices and my experience with other li ion tools cordless drills, sawzalls, electric impacts name brands such as snap on , hilti ,dewalt, makita you will be lucky if a $100- $150 battery lasts 3 yrs.


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## omni22 (Feb 3, 2010)

Same jiffy for 25 yrs starts on first pull everytime, keep blades sharp and eats ice like butter. 


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## 13whitebread (Feb 7, 2013)

Crayfish Trapper said:


> Not sure. I've never drained a battery yet.
> 
> I've done 20 holes before on ice close to a foot thick when I first got the auger. I have a spare battery but I haven't had to use it yet.
> 
> For someone who wants to drill 70 holes a day an electric might not be the best choice.


How much do the electric augers run?


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## shawnfire (Nov 5, 2005)

399-499 depends on which one your looking at


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## 13whitebread (Feb 7, 2013)

shawnfire said:


> 399-499 depends on which one your looking at


Out of my price range but thanks for the info


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## kmfish (Nov 17, 2011)

I have the ion very nice. I drilled 20 some holes in 1 foot of ice and it only used 1/3 of its power there is a gage on the battery 8 in hole light weight love the no gas no oil no pull start its the best battery one out there don't need to carry a car battery to my buddy has the strike master he sold it and got a ion I pay 470 for it don't know if they will get cheaper


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## TroutSniffa (Jul 14, 2012)

ill tell you what... for 20$ i got a chuck attachment for a hand auger that allows you to attach the bottem half of your auger to your cordless drill... if you have a nice drill it works fantastic..
i have a 19volt lith ion ridgid boy from home depot and with an 8" auger i got about 10 holes a battery in 13+ inch of ice 2 weeks ago at the rifle river rec area..took it out on lcs yesterday and did 4 camps 4 holes each on 1 batt never used teh second and that was about 7" of ice...

it weighs nothing and works like a champ..


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## 13whitebread (Feb 7, 2013)

TroutSniffa said:


> ill tell you what... for 20$ i got a chuck attachment for a hand auger that allows you to attach the bottem half of your auger to your cordless drill... if you have a nice drill it works fantastic..
> i have a 19volt lith ion ridgid boy from home depot and with an 8" auger i got about 10 holes a battery in 13+ inch of ice 2 weeks ago at the rifle river rec area..took it out on lcs yesterday and did 4 camps 4 holes each on 1 batt never used teh second and that was about 7" of ice...
> 
> it weighs nothing and works like a champ..


Where did u get the chuck attachment ?


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## shawnfire (Nov 5, 2005)

drill work also


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## fishx65 (Aug 24, 2005)

Picked up a nice Lithium Ion 18v Milwaukee Hammer Drill for this very purpose last year at home Depot for $190.00 and it came with 2 batteries. It's a very nice compact system that works awesome. It did not work well with a 6 inch Lazer because of how aggressive the blades cut but it works fantastic with an 8 inch Mora and I'm sure it would cut even faster with a smaller Mora. Snagged a few of the HT adapters at Meijer for around $5.00 each last year on clearence.


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## Junior G3 (Jan 4, 2013)

I have had my Strikemaster Electra Lazer now for two seasons now and love it. Sold my gas auger for it. Do not waste your time in Michigan with gas or propane, you don't need it and there are 50 things that can go wrong with those types vs. an electric. No gas, no propane, no spark Plugs, no oil, no carbs, no filters, no hoses, no tuning, no warming up, no broken pull ropes, no smells, no leaks, etc etc etc ...... Why have a gas auger again? I put an extra battery in the sled. Pick up auger, push button, drill, put auger down. The End


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## Ice Scratcher (Jan 29, 2011)

I don't know if you guys saw this in the other post but......

Here is a video of gas vs electric drill, my gas Eskmo 8" runs the same as the gas in the video but my electric drill is slightly faster because of a 6" bit...





 
<*)))>{


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## Calvron (Feb 4, 2013)

I just bought some new blades for my hand auger and they worked nice. Thanks for all the posts. I am selling a sled and should be able to buy a new auger and shanty. Might wait til black fri day sale if that stuff goes on sale since the season is drawing to an end


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## gr8lakefisher (Jan 17, 2009)

When moisture gets into those electrical contacts I'm sure those push button augers will get the same cursing that a broken pull rope or a dirty Carb get. Doing preventative maintenance can save you from "gas auger mishaps" 

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## Ice Scratcher (Jan 29, 2011)

gr8lakefisher said:


> When moisture gets into those electrical contacts I'm sure those push button augers will get the same cursing that a broken pull rope or a dirty Carb get. Doing preventative maintenance can save you from "gas auger mishaps"


I the past I hung siding and gutters in all weather and seasons, never had a problem....

Because I will always have the need for a really good drill, and auger is just another bit for whatever drill motor I happen to own at the time...

<*)))>{


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## Singleandfishinagain (Aug 18, 2011)

I had a cordless drill long before i owned the adapter to attach it to an auger. The adapter is great option for those who wont be drilling more that 20 holes a day and already own the drill.

If a person wants to drill 50 holes a day and or has to buy a drill its not worth it. The drill rig is far from perfect but works for some. I had the drill and hand auger, it took me an hour to turn a rusty jeep head bolt and some DOM tube into an adapter.

The electric auger batts are expensive but with proper care will last 5 year and the electric motors are pretty simple to rebuild. Bearings and brushes go bad, magnets and windings do not (unless mistreated). I will go directly to an electric auger when funding allows.

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