Augers and hole sizes

[Mike_W]

Just curious as to what eveyone feels the best choice for an auger is currently and what size of hole.

[Darren_buckhunter]

I just bought myself a strikemaster lazer mag in 10 inch its one of the top augers in the last couple of years it light and easy to start. Know a few people who have them and all like them alot and so far had no problems. You can find them at a decent price too i got mine on saturday on sale at wholesale sports in edmonton.

[bloopbloob]

hand or power?

[madatter]

I've used a 10" for close to 20 years and hate using anything smaller.
As far as the "best" well everyone has a different opinion and every auger probably has it's positives/negatives.....
Will say that most of the new augers have way too much plastic for my liking,and will never handle the abuse my old Jiffy 30 has and the Jiffy blades are the most durable out there.

[linger]

from what i have seen out on the ice the white lightning by jiffy has some issues starting when it is pretty cold the yellow and black ones not sure why???

[Kim473]

Originally Posted by linger

from what i have seen out on the ice the white lightning by jiffy has some issues starting when it is pretty cold the yellow and black ones not sure why???

Have a 8" power eskimo. never let me down. Good enough hole but would like a 10" If you need a bigger hole drill two side by each and over lap them.

[Shmag]

Personally i like the jiffy augers, i have had 2 of them in the last 20+ yrs and they have never let me down. Both are 2 hp and the first one still runs great but went halfers with a buddy that past away so i boxed it up for his son when he gets old enough to run it.

I wont knock the strikemasters, but am not a big fan of eskimos, sounds like alot of people are having sucess with them but have seen enough buddies return theirs.

I have a little guy that i cant leave home with out when i go fishing so a 10 inch hole was not an option for safety reasons...he always finds the hole with his foot/leg. But the 10 inch are sure nice to fish out of.

I beleive the 10 inch are only available with the 3 hp (Jiffy) augers and these are the ones that i have seen people have trouble with starting. I usually have all my holes drilled by time they get them running.

If i was in the market to buy another it would probably be the 2hp jiffy (white lightning) with the 9 inch auger. Good starting, lightweight, and very fast single blade, if you put too much weight on them you can stall the blade out. Where as the strikemaster is geared lower but has a dual blade, you can put all the weight on these and not stall out the blade, so even though they turn slower they bite a pretty big chunk.

Hope this helps

[calgarygringo]

We have had a 10 inch Jiffy for years. Starts good an any tempurature and as long as the blades are sharp cuts like butter. Never lose a fish because we struggled to to turn him up the hole. Also is all metal not a lot of plastic like a lot of the new ones I see.

[ragweed]

It really depends on how you fish.
If you are mostly chasing trout or "smaller" type fish, then an 8" auger will suit you just fine.
You can get one with a 1.5 - 2hp motor. Going with a larger motor than that is mostly pointless.
These types of auger tend to be fairly light as well.
If you have loads of money, get a 4 stroke. (Subaru Robin motors rock!)

If you are chasing fish that can get quite larger, then you may want to consider a 10" auger. Those two extra inches make a huge difference when bringing up big fish.
Although 10" augers are available with 2hp motors, I would avoid buying one. I've seen a few that lived shorter than normal lives due to the additional workload place on the motor.
Definitely go with a 3hp motor.
One immediate draw back you'll notice is the weight. It weighs siginificantly more than a 2hp/8".
One more thing to note is that it takes a wee bit longer to warm the larger motor up as well.

Personally I use a 10" jiffy stealth with the older Tecum. 3hp motor.
I seriously pulls itself through the ice. (For years I had a older jiffy 2hp/8" and I can honestly say that this 3hp stealth cuts twice as fast.)
I also use a sled to carry my equipment around so I don't worry about the weight as much.

Hope this helps....