Strikemaster problems

My brother just bought a Strikemaster mag 2000 this past Friday. He brought it home watched the dvd that it came with and followed all of the directions for getting it filled up and started. However, it won’t start. After about 30-40 pulls it started leaking gas out of the engine. He would have returned it to Scheels where he bought it on sale, but they are out of them and said they won’t be getting anymore in. I had heard what awesome customer service strikemaster has so I told him to give them a call. He did a little bit ago and the guy just gave him a number to call to go get it fixed. I would have thought in this situation Strikemaster would have offered to replace it with a new one or something more than give him a number of a small engine shop where they said it will take 10 days to get it fixed. I can’t say that we are too impressed with the product or company so far. He has never had a gas auger due to cost but picked one up on a Black Friday sale for $250. He could bring it back, but then would have to pay about $80 more plus shipping to get one somewhere else.

Oh, and also, the first place that they told him to call said they wouldn’t fix it under warranty because they haven’t been getting their money from the manufacturer for the warranty work.

Sounds like your getting gas. I would say it is a electrical problem. First thing I would do is check for spark.

Not to overstate the obvious but if gas is leaking out of the engine… that auger’s flooded. I’d check a couple things before going through the hassle of getting it repaired under warranty as it is possible that nothing is wrong beyond it being tricky to start the first time. Once small 2 stroke engines are broke in they get much easier to start so hopefully this will be a very short lived issue for your brother.

1) – pull the plug and dry it off. If gas was coming out the engine you can bet that plug is soaked.

2) – once the plug is out, check for spark. Do this by reconnecting the plug wire boot to the plug. Hold the plug a half an inch or so from the engine block. Turn the kill switch to “on” and give a slow pull on the starter rope. You should see an arc from the electrode to the engine block letting you know the ignition is working.

It can be pretty easy to flood a small 2 stroke engine, particularly when they’re brand new and the new owner isn’t familiar with the engine. I know I’ve done it. If you have spark and you get that plug dried…. I’m confident you can get it to start. And once it starts that first time after that you should be off to the races.

I hope this helps. It is a major bummer when a new purchase doesn’t go off without a hitch.

PS – Regarding #2. Hold that plug by the rubber plug boot. Or at least make sure you’re the one pulling the rope while your brother grips the plug. Should your brother get ahold of the plug itself when running this little test the resulting shock won’t do any permanent damage but you can count on him making some funny faces and spitting out a few blue words.

I’d take it back and get my money back or exchange it for a different model and pay the difference and be done with it.

The fix is probably simple enough once it’s diagnosed, but to me the downtime and frustration of having bought a headache isn’t worth it. Especially if that’s all you can get out the company’s customer service dept.

I posted my comment while James was responding. Try what he told you first.

Thanks for the tips guys. I will link this to him so that he can follow Jame’s suggestions. Hopefully that will get it going. He thought maybe he had flood the engine, so he let it sit a few hours and tried again, but maybe he needs to take out the plug and dry it off.
Thanks,

James,
You’ve met him. He already makes funny faces. Shocking him can only improve things.
Nate

In the past when this has happened with a new Auger it has been the fact that people don’t turn the switch to “on” and then pull and pull until it is flooded. Depending on how much pulling they did, the plug is going to be way to wet to fire.

Pull the plug and see if you are getting spark. If you get spark and it won’t start. Return the auger where you bought it and start over. Shop around, you will find a deal out there.

I wanted to update you guys. I relayed your information to my brother “boy genius” and he flipped the on switch the right direction and it fired right up. I wish I lived closer to him to point this stuff out before I went online and looked like an idiot on his behalf. Thanks guys.

We’re happy to have been able to help with this one. Tell him he owes us a fishing report after he gets a few holes in the ice.

Or some Youtube video of Nater shocking him….

He and I are going to head up to Clear Lake this weekend so will report back after that. I live ten minutes from Brushy Creek, but there isn’t enough ice yet to safely ice fish it. Thanks again guys.
I would love to shock him, but I still owe him for shoving a frozen blue gill down my butt crack when I bent over a couple of years ago. You wouldn’t believe how bad a frozen blue gill spine hurts when you try to back it out of your pants with the the spine facing butt crack. I have pledged revenge for a couple of years but I want it to be worth it when I do it because he is a lot bigger than me these days.

that is funny…..

I am laughing as I read this. I’ve had my 2000 for 5-6 years now and I still forget to turn the damn thing on at least once a season. make sure you bring it inside after a cold day’s usage. Only problem I’ve ever had was my throttle froze a last year and it was my fault as I didn’t thaw it out prior to using it on consecutive days. There is nothing wrong with Strikemaster Augers. I will certainly get another when this one wears out.

Ok so I might not be the smartest person on earth.I got it all figured out so im happy about that.It is kind of tricky if you have never seen or used one before.If anyone would like to use my wonderful bluegill trick on one of there friends its really funny because they cant stand up or else they get a spine in the crack. I am a little hurt that everyone wants to see me get shocked.

Glad to hear you guys got it fixed up. With the weather report, sounds like you guys might get to use it pretty soon!

I am hoping to hit clear lake this weekend if my brother will go with me. Fishing by yourself isnt nearly as fun as fishing with your brother or friends.

Quote:

---

Fishing by yourself isnt nearly as fun as fishing with your brother or friends.

---

Thats what its all about….Good luck with the new auger. Make sure to post a report of the day.

Quote:

---

In the past when this has happened with a new Auger it has been the fact that people don’t turn the switch to “on” and then pull and pull until it is flooded.

---

It is funny how the same problems happen year after year…..glad to help

ok…it has been awhile since I have posted on this site…never thought my son’s new auger problems; an early Christmas present from his girlfriend (certainly a keeper with this gift), would cause such a great response. My only concern is that if Peta is monitoring this sight, you will have your hands full James…
As an aside, the new series on ice fishing is great…not just two guys pulling fish through the ice, but excellent training on electronics, maps, location, techniques, baits etc.