Cordless Drill Auger Question

For those of you who use cordless drills on your hand augers, I was wondering how many holes on average you can drill using a 5″ auger on a single battery charge on a given day? I would assume it depends on the temperature,ice thickness and brand of drill. I have heard that the 18V drill is the most commonly used. I am considering upgrading from the regular hand auger, and being a college student, I don’t have the money to buy a power auger, so I was thinking this would be a more cost-effective option, considering I already have the hand auger. But, at the same time, I don’t want to be limited in the amount of holes I can drill based on how long the battery lasts. Thanks for the help!

I have the Clam adapter plate with 6″ Auger, setup with a DeWalt 18 volt XRP Hammer Drill using a Lithium Ion Battery fully charged. I was able to get 10 holes drilled through at least 26″ of ice in 9 degree weather a few days ago…Some people will say they get more, but this is what I got myself.

I will use this drill auger exclusively for early/late ice from now on just to save the wear & tear on the drill, plus those times of year is all about less weight on the ice anyways.

I use a Rigid 18v with the Lith batteries with a Lazer 6″ and once you get past 12-14″ of ice, the # of holes you can drill starts to go down kinda quickly. I’d say that thru 12″ of ice on a 12deg day, you should be able to get 15 holes per battery on average. Now everyone’s rig seems to vary on this but that’s where I would put mine. I’ve ran these cordless setup’s for years and wouldn’t fish with out one but like stated, it performs best early and late ice…..GL to ya!!

EH14

I also have the Clam adapter plate that I use for early and late ice. I did a test with my Dewalt 20 volt that is 1.5ah’s. I drilled 42.5 holes in 7″ of ice with a lazer 6″ auger with new blades. I was impressed.

You are right on the kind of drill that you use. One thing to keep in mine is the torque inch lbs. In order to get the max out of the drill you should be at less 600 inch lbs of torque. That is a good start. I have a fire storm and could get about 12 to 15 holes in less that a foot of ice. Now that it is about 3 years old it even get less hole per charge. [ 5 inch hole ] It is around 450 inch lbs. if I remember right. Bosch or Dewalt is the way to go. Good luck!!!

If you have to buy a new high torque drill, you’ll pay as much or more than a used power auger.

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For those of you who use cordless drills on your hand augers, I was wondering how many holes on average you can drill using a 5″ auger on a single battery charge on a given day? I would assume it depends on the temperature,ice thickness and brand of drill. I have heard that the 18V drill is the most commonly used. I am considering upgrading from the regular hand auger, and being a college student, I don’t have the money to buy a power auger, so I was thinking this would be a more cost-effective option, considering I already have the hand auger. But, at the same time, I don’t want to be limited in the amount of holes I can drill based on how long the battery lasts. Thanks for the help!

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Was out last weekend and drilled appx. 30 holes through ice varying between 8 and 12 inches with 20 Volt DeWalt coupled with a 6″ HT Velocity (although it looks more like a 5″) using 1 battery. If you’re a panfisherman, it’s the only way to go IMO. Unless you’re dealing with extremely thick ice.

I’ve been running a cordless setup for 6 years now and the only thing is over time the batteries start to wear and won’t hold as much charge. Now I have 6 batteries and I have a couple that should be tossed but I keep forgetting which ones. For me the power auger was too heavy to pull around by hand with my scout in any snow. Last weekend Through 18 inches of ice I was only able to get 9 holes done but my friend who has a brand new setup with a dewalt Did 20 holes and he has two batteries. Keep the batteries warm and they will perform better.

Rigid from HomeDepot!

18v hammer drill lifetime warranty on drill and batteries . Solves the dead battery problems

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I use a Rigid 18v with the Lith batteries with a Lazer 6″ and once you get past 12-14″ of ice, the # of holes you can drill starts to go down kinda quickly. I’d say that thru 12″ of ice on a 12deg day, you should be able to get 15 holes per battery on average. Now everyone’s rig seems to vary on this but that’s where I would put mine. I’ve ran these cordless setup’s for years and wouldn’t fish with out one but like stated, it performs best early and late ice…..GL to ya!!

EH14

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You will also not do well with Li-ion batteries. NIMH or NICD is the way to go. Li-ion just won’t take the cold. I also have two batteries on a 18V Porter Cable and I can do plenty of holes with my 6″ Lazer. That being said, of course thicker ice and dull blades will decide how many. All in all it is my go-to for traveling light.

What setting do you have the dewalt 996 drill on when using it for Ice Auger?

Use the lowest speed, it’s plenty fast for boring holes.