Looking at purchasing a new Milwaukee lithium drill (2 batteries) with an 8″ Lite Flite. Can someone tell me how many inches of ice I should be able to drill through on a single battery? I already have a 40V Strikemaster with 2 batteries that I do like, just trying to see the pro’s vs. Cons.
Just thinking about shedding some weight on the ice.
Mark
Depends on how you drill, ice conditions, sharpness of blades. Even the battery size makes a difference. With he same auger on both of those setups they should be pretty good. I run the Milwaukee fuel 1200 with 9 amp batteries. Just got the Lite Flite, been using the Mora. Im a hole hopper and drill a lot of holes. Never ran out of juice. Can’t comment on the 8 inch I use a 6 for panfish and 7 for Walleyes. The 40 volt is heavier, either will do a good job.
With my 8” Lazer and Milwaukee Fuel 1200/5ah combo, I can get 30 holes in 20” of ice with one battery. I just got a 12ah battery because I’m not sacrificing my 8” hole for battery life. 10” of ice and under I can get 60+ holes off one 5ah battery.
I already have a 40V Strikemaster with 2 batteries that I do like, just trying to see the pro’s vs. Cons.
Im looking to upgrade from my jiffy propane to the strikemaster 40v is weight the only reason you are looking to switch to the drill? do you find yourself having to bring 2 batteries or is one battery tend to last all day. Are the claims of a 100 holes per battery legit? or is that with a brand new battery and the performance starts to drop as the battery ages? any other pro’s or cons towards the 40v?
I get around 300 inches give or take with the 5ah, if the battery gets cold I get way less. I wouldn’t recommend anything less than a 5ah battery, I did try the standard battery that came with my 1/4 impact and the drill made about 3 revolutions before not having enough power. The larger batteries make a big difference in torque I believe. I bring 3 5ah and 1 9ah with me I have yet to run out of juice, but I bring a battery charger in my vehicle just in case. 8in K drill.
Gator,
Like yourself, I went from a 8″ Jiffy propane auger to a 8″ Strikemaster 40V. Honestly I only had the opportunity to drill about 100 holes with the 40V. In all honesty, I CAN’T say anything bad about the 40V, its smooth, plenty of power, almost effortless when cutting through the ice. I haven’t had to drill 100 holes in a day yet, because I got the auger at the end of last season. I did drill 30 holes through 24 – 26 inches of ice and the 40V just kept going. I purchased mine with a second battery for several reasons:
1) I was worried about getting a defective battery and finding out when the auger was load tested (on my ice fishing trip).
2) Most folks will take a battery out of the auger after drilling holes and place the battery in a warm location. Frankly I could see my buddy or myself doing something dumb like dropping the battery down a hole or forgetting it out on the lake.
3) If we were to drop the charger or had an electrical short in one of the places we stay at.
I would never want to rely on a single contingency (1 battery) for my ice fishing trips when I’m taking the battery on and off the powerhead in subzero weather, yes something plastic could break! The Jiffy propane auger would get a new bottle of propane and never get messed with, far less of a chance for something to fail. Again nothing bad to say about the 40v auger, just thinking about going lighter.
Thanks for your input Mark!!
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