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  #1  
Old 11-03-2017, 03:27 PM
ttankster ttankster is offline
 
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Default Suggestions Please - Ice Auger choices

As the title suggests, I am looking to purchase either a gas or battery powered auger for ice fishing this year.
For those of you that have one kind or another, I would certainly like to hear your opinions of what is good, bad or what to stay away from. Thanks
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  #2  
Old 11-03-2017, 03:53 PM
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BuckCuller BuckCuller is offline
 
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Default New augers. Blah.

I miss the old augers. The ones that were made mostly of metal parts not the plastic garbage they have now.
I looked at the new gas augers and didn't see any that would last 20 years like my last one so I bought a cordless.
I went with the first gen Ion and bought the X battery for a spare it's light and seems to be working nicely.
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Old 11-03-2017, 04:11 PM
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dutchpirate dutchpirate is offline
 
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I also have the Ion and it's been epic so far. Key to getting full use out of it is keeping the battery from getting cold. I use a small insulated lunch bag and one or two hot hands tossed in to keep it warm. Epic customer service as well. Original charger had a broken LED to show when it was fully charged. They sent me a new charger within days and I could keep the old one. Haven't needed a second battery yet, but may invest in one this year.
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Old 11-03-2017, 05:26 PM
bobalong bobalong is offline
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I have an Ion as well, made an ice shack last year so it worked great for that. Still have the old Jiffy (1997), works well but the Ion is much lighter, no mixing gas and no smoke in the ice shack.

Also happy with the service I broke the thumb tab on mine last year and contacted them for a new one. I received it in about a week. Seemed like an odd part to make out of plastic but that seems to be the way the last few years.
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  #5  
Old 11-03-2017, 06:02 PM
calgarygringo calgarygringo is offline
 
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Lots of choices and some would depend on your fishing style. Like many other tools a few questions before deciding. I personally have an older eskimo and much older but classic jiffy. If I were to replace in my case I would consider electric. I dont usually drill a ton of holes so it makes sense for me. Some go out and drill the ice until it looks like
Swiss cheez then electric is not ideal. I would also consider a K Drill if you have a heavy duty drill already. I am thinking about one now. Same deal though how many holes do you drill. There is no magic correct answer. Like asking who makes the best pickup.
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Old 11-03-2017, 06:03 PM
TylerThomson TylerThomson is offline
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I went from gas to electric and will never go back. I got the strikemaster lithium lazer.
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  #7  
Old 11-03-2017, 06:12 PM
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DisplacedCaper DisplacedCaper is offline
 
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Chalk another one up for the ion here. Never failed me! I also heard if the batt gets cold it’ll act up, but I read that before my purchase and have always just put it in my jacket pocket and never had an issue. Lost count of the seasons I’ve had it. This will be the 5th or 6th I think.


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  #8  
Old 11-03-2017, 07:29 PM
Sloughsharkjigger Sloughsharkjigger is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DisplacedCaper View Post
Chalk another one up for the ion here. Never failed me! I also heard if the batt gets cold it’ll act up, but I read that before my purchase and have always just put it in my jacket pocket and never had an issue. Lost count of the seasons I’ve had it. This will be the 5th or 6th I think.


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Have used most everything, in all conditions... still using the Jiffy 34 upgraded to 10" bit.

If I was to buy another... I would go with electric... most likely the Ion with 10".
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  #9  
Old 11-03-2017, 08:03 PM
spurly spurly is offline
 
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Default Auger

Another vote for Ion
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  #10  
Old 11-03-2017, 08:38 PM
Russ C Russ C is offline
 
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Default Auger choice

Here is another vote for the Ion.
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  #11  
Old 11-03-2017, 09:44 PM
honker_clonker honker_clonker is offline
 
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Strikemaster lazer mag fan here. I am a firm believer in drilling many holes to find fish and the speed, power and reliability that my strikemaster has shown has earned my dollars. The plastic handles are great since your skin won’t stick to them if you drill without gloves. My auger lives in the back of my truck for the entire season and it is still looking great going on 8 years even though it’s ‘plastic’. The only negative is the blades can be hard to find. The only parts I have had break on it were due to my negligence and not the craftsman ship. I like drilling a lot of holes, it works for me, guess I am the black sheep with my gas auger though!
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  #12  
Old 11-04-2017, 01:59 AM
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JohninAB JohninAB is offline
 
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I use an older Eskimo Stingray 8 inch. Works well for me. I use the premixed Stihl gas in it. Has never let me down. I drill my holes first then set my tent up.

If I was feeling the need for a new auger I would go electric. Ease of use and no fumes or gas leaking concerns be nice.
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  #13  
Old 11-04-2017, 07:04 AM
PerchBuster PerchBuster is offline
 
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Ion X all the way! No carb issues, no mixing or carrying gas, no pulling your guts out to get it started, so light you can drill all day without being exhausted, reverse is a great feature as is the light on it when drilling inside a dark tent or shack, never had a problem with the battery freezing up, cuts effortlessly, no broken pull ropes when you are 20km back in the bush somewhere, way way quieter, no flooding problems, no spark plugs to change out on a cold morning when you should be fishing. I’ve had just about every problem possible with gas augers it seems over the years. I’ve had a jiffy, the old ones were pretty bullet proof but still problematic for reasons above, I’ve had Eskimo, and the high end Husqvarna. So far this Ion X has been very impressive and I will never go back to a fuel Auger of any kind now but I would suggest you would probably be just as happy with any of the electrics but the Ion X is top shelf in my opinion. My buddy won’t even start his jiffy up anymore when he fishes with me, he grabs my Ion all the time instead. Good luck!
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Old 11-04-2017, 07:14 AM
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neilsledder neilsledder is offline
 
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I bought the Eskimo Z71 last year and love it. It cuts like mad! I bought gas power over battery cause I have a bad memory, I would forget to charge it or forget the battery on the charger lol. Plus I like to winter camp over for a few nights and no way to charge them up


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  #15  
Old 11-04-2017, 08:35 AM
ttankster ttankster is offline
 
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Default Augers....

Thanks to all that have commented! There seems an obvious tilt towards the Ion brand...but I need to get on "The Google" and look at that one and the gas models mentioned as well! Thanks again for your input!
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  #16  
Old 11-04-2017, 09:04 AM
Fishwhere Fishwhere is offline
 
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Ive always had an old jiffy - and though it can be a pain in the @$$ its always worked. Ive been talking to a lot of people and the amount of holes you can put out on one battery is extremely impressive. I think ive heard numbers around 80x 1 1/2’ deep ice... the price i believe is near double for the electric one so if you dont ice fish alot i dont know if its worth dropping 600-800 bucks. The impressive things (which is the part i was most worried about originally) is the battery operation in the cold, and the years that it seems to continue to work well and not seem to diminish. Honestly if you fish a dozen or more times and money isnt a huge issue i would probably do the electric, if i start increasing ice fishing frequency i most likely will to.

If anyone else reads this and you guys have the electrics could you respond with a few stays for your units if you dont mind. Cost, number of holes - lets say 2 ft. Of ice, and how many years youve had it....? Now im curious again too..

Thanks guys!
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  #17  
Old 11-04-2017, 11:46 AM
timbo timbo is offline
 
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I use a hand auger until the ice gets thick its light and fast , then I switch to my ION I love it no stinky gas no fumes and very reliable
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  #18  
Old 11-04-2017, 02:00 PM
lsxfirebird lsxfirebird is offline
 
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Have an Eskimo z71 and a s33 and the stingray gets the bulk of the use, going on 4 winters with it and not a single thing has gone wrong or broke. Change the plus and filter yearly and run shell premium and Eskimo oil and starts first pull everytime. As with everything that has plastic fuel lines just make sure to store out of direct sunlight or excessive heat in the summer
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  #19  
Old 11-04-2017, 04:08 PM
TROLLER TROLLER is offline
 
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I looked hard at the Ion and decided to go Strikemaster instead. With the Honda motor it is only 1 pound heavier than the Ion and no battery to go dead. Starts everytime on 2 pulls max and drills very fast and without any heavy lifting. Best auger I have ever had.
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  #20  
Old 11-04-2017, 04:18 PM
Bigwoodsman Bigwoodsman is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TROLLER View Post
I looked hard at the Ion and decided to go Strikemaster instead. With the Honda motor it is only 1 pound heavier than the Ion and no battery to go dead. Starts everytime on 2 pulls max and drills very fast and without any heavy lifting. Best auger I have ever had.
Is this the 4 stroke model? No fuel mixing?

BW
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  #21  
Old 11-05-2017, 01:28 AM
newscientist newscientist is offline
 
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Cordless drill and a manual auger work great for me. Light, cheap, and versatile.

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  #22  
Old 11-05-2017, 07:16 AM
Bigwoodsman Bigwoodsman is offline
 
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Default Propane

I see no one has mentioned the propane powered Jiffy. Is this one to avoid?

BW
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  #23  
Old 11-05-2017, 07:24 AM
jeffrey929 jeffrey929 is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigwoodsman View Post
I see no one has mentioned the propane powered Jiffy. Is this one to avoid?

BW
I have one... Issue free for 7 seasons... I did however purchase an Ion a couple seasons back, strictly for the lighter weight
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  #24  
Old 11-05-2017, 08:29 AM
TROLLER TROLLER is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Bigwoodsman View Post
Is this the 4 stroke model? No fuel mixing?

BW
Yes 4 stroke and runs very quiet. I also owned the propane model but it was just way too heavy for this old guy and that is why I went to the light weight 8" Strikemaster. Sure glad I did.
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  #25  
Old 11-05-2017, 09:26 AM
Mayhem Mayhem is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TROLLER View Post
I looked hard at the Ion and decided to go Strikemaster instead. With the Honda motor it is only 1 pound heavier than the Ion and no battery to go dead. Starts everytime on 2 pulls max and drills very fast and without any heavy lifting. Best auger I have ever had.
Also running the Honda powered Strikemaster, very light, love it. Had a Lazer Mag Xpress with the 2.5 hp Solo motor for several years before that and it was an awesome auger as well. If you are going gas can't go wrong with SM.
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  #26  
Old 11-06-2017, 01:18 PM
Map Maker Map Maker is offline
 
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Another happy customer with the honda powered strikemaster.
I bought it when it first came out (i was waiting with baited breathe for 4 stroke)
Never a problem.
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  #27  
Old 11-06-2017, 02:29 PM
ttankster ttankster is offline
 
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Default Auger Advice

Thanks to you all again for the continued input.... each of your comments is being read and I'm doing a little research on those models commented on! Cheers.
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  #28  
Old 11-06-2017, 05:35 PM
Poppa Poppa is offline
 
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Bought a Jiffy Pro 4 last year and loved it. It's heavier, for sure, but can't get over how well it cuts. For $275 on clearance at CT last year, it was a steal...great buy for us.
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  #29  
Old 11-12-2017, 09:46 AM
Aztec Aztec is offline
 
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Default Ion auger

So does the new Ion X battery work in the reversible auger? not the newest auger.
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  #30  
Old 11-12-2017, 11:20 AM
huntsfurfish huntsfurfish is offline
 
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Yes
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