Augers powered by cordless drills.

I saw a couple of guys at Frontenac yesterday using a cordless drill & auger to do holes. They said they could usually do 10-20 holes on a charge. The had a DeWalt like mine…….After sweating through one hole, I thought, maybe I should look more into this idea. If you already did a forum on this, I will find it. Otherwise, I am looking for info about this tool. Have you used it? Are you happy with the performance? With my two rechargeable batteries, I can Swiss Cheese the whole Mississippi! Also, any hole size restrictions with this set-up? Thanks guys. Ed

I have a Craftsman 19.2 which seems to eat batteries but I still love it. You will consider a 6 inch laser or smaller and you need an adapter or risk losing your auger down the hole if it slips out of the drill. With 8 inches of hard ice here, I can get 10-15 holes per battery. You will want to keep your batteries warm and recharge them to full as soon as possible after they warm up. I have 4 batteries for mine and I’ve never been needing to ask for someone to pop a hole for me and it weighs less than half my power hog.

Kev nailed it. Use 6″ or smaller, make sure you can’t lose it down the hole (thin plywood and hose clamp works fine) and keep batteries warm. Throwing batteries in a hat, etc. with a hand warmer can do wonders.

I use my setup until the ice gets to 8″ or so, then I’ll pull out the power auger. Sure would beat cranking by hand, anyday.

The drill I use as an auger is a 36 Volt Bosch drill. I have found that I can get between 30 and 40 holes per Battery. I found that a 6 inch hole is about all the bigger you wan to use. Also taking time between holes seems to make the battery last longer. The biggest thing you need to look for is a drill with a lot of torque.

My prototype was in December of ’05 using a Craftsman 19.2 volt drill in low gear. One freshly charged battery would drill 12 holes in 10 inches of ice. I included a shield larger than the auger diameter to keep the auger from slipping in the ice hole. A good quality drill would do more holes even better.

I have a black and decker firestorm. 18volt. The key is having a drill with torque. The storm is 460 pounds of torque. That is on the low end that you should use. I also use it on a 5 inch lazer. I can get about 12 holes per battery if you can keep them warm. Once the ice goes over 8 inch the number of holes goes down and over 8 I will start using the gas auger. Just remember the more torque you have the more holes you will get. usely 600 or over with the torque is the best. If you have the right drill you will like it.

I also have a Bosch 36 volt unit with the FATMAX batteries.These drills came with the slim lightweight Lithium batteries or the fatter, thicker but heavier FATMAX batteries also.I also have an Ice Gator since they came out but now only take the Bosch because of its lighter weight and definitely smaller in size.I first started using the Bosch with my 8″ Lazer auger bit and it worked pretty good.Here in NY our ice ( where I fish) is usually around 8-12 inches.The 8 inch auger would drill over 25 holes.Last year I bought a 6 inch and the drill likes it much better.Had it out all day and never killed the battery.As mentioned before, make sure you bit is inserted firmly so if it does loosen up, its not lost.I havean adapter that I got on EBay that has a disc on it that prevents this from happening.

My 18v DeWalt has been great for me this year…good for 20-30 holes on ice up to 9″ or so with a 6″ auger so long as I keep the battery warm. I use two batteries in felt fishing reel bags with a hand-warmer inside them. I didn’t fire up the gas auger till late January when I started hole-hopping around with 14″ of ice. Tried it with a guys 8″ auger, but blades were dull so it cut the hole #’s in about half.
Short version: bought an adapter beginning of this ice season and LOVE IT! EXCELLENT for early ice mobility and panfish/walleye. I even used it with my tip-ups…best purchase I’ve made this year.
-Rev

Shoot, buying a 400$ power drill and extra batteries over 100$ each, might as well buckle down and buy a power auger. It would be wayyy cheaper and less clutter of multiple batteries all over the place!

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Shoot, buying a 400$ power drill and extra batteries over 100$ each, might as well buckle down and buy a power auger. It would be wayyy cheaper and less clutter of multiple batteries all over the place!

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That is one way to look at it.

The benefits I like with the drill and auger system is it is quiet, light, clean and I have no gas to mix or transport. 99 percent of my ice fishing is for panfish and so a 6 inch hole is ideal for me. I actually sold me Jiffy this past fall and bought 2 more batteries.

Just my 2 cents. Have a great night!

My Bosch was $300 and came with 2 big batteries.I am also in the building trades so the drill is also used on my jobs.Can’t do that with any power ice auger now can you?????!!!

Looking back I got my Bosch for 280 new online. Turns out now they sell for 450 plus!

I use a Makita BHP 454 and a 5 or 6″ lazer, I also have the auger->chuck adapter that has a bar in the middle to prevent it from dropping down the hole (without it I would have lost the auger countless times).

I use it as my primary auger and don’t own anything else, but sometimes I’ll drill two holes next to each other and chisel out the middle.

One important thing to keep in mind here is finding the appropriate drill for the job. It has to have the right torque ratio or you will burn it out, there are some videos on youtube explaining which to get.

I have 3 batteries and I can get upto 30 holes on each battery, depending on ice thickness of course..

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I saw a couple of guys at Frontenac yesterday using a cordless drill & auger to do holes. They said they could usually do 10-20 holes on a charge. The had a DeWalt like mine…….After sweating through one hole, I thought, maybe I should look more into this idea. If you already did a forum on this, I will find it. Otherwise, I am looking for info about this tool. Have you used it? Are you happy with the performance? With my two rechargeable batteries, I can Swiss Cheese the whole Mississippi! Also, any hole size restrictions with this set-up? Thanks guys. Ed

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Shoot, buying a 400$ power drill and extra batteries over 100$ each, might as well buckle down and buy a power auger. It would be wayyy cheaper and less clutter of multiple batteries all over the place!

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I forgot the exact cost of my Makita BHP454 18v system, but it came with 2 batteries for free, and I got a 3rd one in the mail a few weeks later..Now not only do I have an excellent ice fishing auger, it also gets used around the house..

Again people, make sure it has the right torque ratio and you read about this stuff first before you go out and burn up your drills..

I got my craftsman for 90 bucks and it came with a light and two batteries. I’ve purchased a few batteries over the years as it is hard on them to use them in the cold. I don’t have a 4 wheeler and you can’t drive on the Madison chain so weight is my number one factor. I have an 8 inch strikemaster power auger that is fine machine but I hate humping that thing 2-3 miles in snow. Sometimes I even get my buddy to haul the batteries in his sled. I also find many uses for the drill year round. Every man should have a cordless drill and if you have one why not use it.

Thanks, guys, for the info. I think I have a better idea of what to look for now! My Godfather, in the 1950’s, made an electric auger from an airplane generator. It had an unusual blade, and worked very well. He was on the old ‘Rollie Johnson’ Sunday night show with it. It ran off of car a battery. It was pretty powerful & pretty light. I just thought there should be something like it out there now. Keep me posted, and don’t mind me if I question you out on the ice if I see you using one. Thanks again.

I’ve use a Tenaka gas drill motor with a 6″ bit. You can find them used, but I think all the parts to make one new will run you around $400 or less. It TEARS through ice, weighs nothing, starts first pull-every time no matter how cold it is, and you can drill over 50 holes on one tank which is an 1/8th gallon I believe. The absolute best auger in my arsenal
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8FUX_R4Vfs

With the winter we have had. Drilling holes with a power drill will work. Next year may not be the same. I use the Strikemaster Lazer Mag with a 7 inch blade.