Electric ice auger options

[JeepNut]

I am getting older and often don't have anyone to go ice fishing with so my nearly new gas auger has not been used much. I have been looking at the electric options that are much lighter. The last two times up to Rockport I have been able to see two different electric systems in action. Someone took pity on me one time when he saw my hand auger and he used his 10 inch Ion auger to drill my three holes. I have never seen anything go through the ice that quick. The second time someone had an auger made out of his Milwaukee drill hooked to an auger blade. I used it to drill a hole and it worked well but not as well as the Ion.  I have been reading opinions on the two types of setups and the main advantage of the use your drill method is that you have a tool to use when you have projects to do rather than a setup that gathers dust most of the year. I have a couple of Milwaukee M12 tools, one is a drill and the other is an impact driver. The impact tool has way more torque than the drill so why don't people use impact drivers for ice augers ?  If I have to buy a very powerful drill to turn an auger the price of the drill plus a couple of batteries gets close to the dedicated auger price. Any opinions ?

[meancuznalfy]

Most of the new augers are designed to be paired with a 1/2" drill, impact drivers are only 1/4" chuck and have no side handle, plus if the auger would get stuck a impact will hammer the auger in this case and might be a tough to hold onto with one hand, therefore the need for the side handle. I debated on buying a new drill since I already had a 1/2" DeWalt, but no side handle nor a place to put one on it, I looked at auger options with handles on them, but most had bad reviews of not having bearings and only working for a few trips and then seizing up, I believe that some do have a bearing, but just didn't want to buy something that would not last, so I spent the money on a new 1/2" drill with a handle and a strike master lite flite auger, haven't had a chance to use it yet, but lots of great reviews and I love the weight it saves, the whole setup is 12#. Hope this helps.

[catdaddygar]

I also have a 10 inch ION auger and had no problems with it at all. Cuts the hole like going through butter. You have a tool that
does what its meant to do. Put it in your sled and you don't even know its there.

[ReelMasta]

I have a Nils auger.... handle removed paired with my Dewalt cordless drill.
Light, quick and no hassle.  I have 2 lithium batteries and have yet to discharge 1 battery even after a a full day drilling holes for 2.  Fished East Canyon at o'dark 30 at 5° and it cut like butter.  I don't have a side handle either.  The 6 inch hole is easy to get used too.

[filletedalive]

This is my first season using a drill with an adapter connected to the auger. I’ve had no issues whatsoever. Mine is just an old 6 inch Eskimo flat blade auger and a 20v drill. It cuts clean with very little effort and it’s very light and compact it fits in a small sled. Plus I have the ice screw bit and I use the drill to anchor the tent. Works out great.

[Bckfvr]

Used my Nils today with a Dewalt drill, works awesome. Cut holes for 7 people in our group and never had to change battery (cut over 30 holes). Couldn’t be happier

[wiperhunter2]

Used my Nils today with a Dewalt drill, works awesome.  Cut holes for 7 people in our group and never had to change battery (cut over 30 holes).  Couldn’t be happier

I have the same setup, nils and Dewalt drill, this is my 5th year with it. What size nills did you buy? Mine in the 6". What size battery did you use to drill the 30 holes? I have the 2ah battery.

The good news about the Nils, it comes with a built on plate that will keep the drill from dropping down the hole. People talk about there being a lot of torque with just a drill motor, without a side handle but I have not seen that to be a problem. I bought my Nils for $100 and the DeWalt for $100.

[Pikeman 99]

I also have a 10 inch ION  auger and had no problems with it at all.  Cuts the hole like going through butter.  You have a tool that
does what its meant to do.  Put it in your sled and you don't even know its there.

ION THE WAY TO GO HH

[DanzTuna]

I use a Milwaukee Fuel 18 with a Clam gear reduction adapter an 8" auger. The 2 handles, with trigger, set-up is a lot easier to use than the drill with the side handle. Also, the Clam outfit uses the auger's cross bolt to connect the assembly to the auger so you're not relying on the drill chuck's gripping ability to keep the auger from dropping down the hole.

[T-Boz]

I use a Milwaukee Fuel 18 with a Clam gear reduction adapter an 8" auger.  The 2 handles, with trigger, set-up is a lot easier to use than the drill with the side handle.  Also, the Clam outfit uses the auger's cross bolt to connect the assembly to the auger so you're not relying on the drill chuck's gripping ability to keep the auger from dropping down the hole.

I have the exact same setup and I’ve never been happier! The only thing I need is an extension since  it took every inch of my auger to get through strawberry last week

[JeepNut]

just looked at the Clam adapter and it looks nice. For those who have used their drills have you bought a new auger or just used the bottom half of a hand auger ?

[AJBwheat1222]

New to the BF so I am in a learning curve to posting. We mostly use the 20 volt Dewalt heavy half inch chuck drill, 5 amp battery with the 8 inch
K-drill auger and the clam hand adapter with extension. Great set up.

[DanzTuna]

just looked at the Clam adapter and it looks nice. For those who have used their drills have you bought a new auger or just used the bottom half of a hand auger ?

I just used my existing auger.  Just make sure if you buy the Clam setup, the ID of your auger shaft will fit over the output shaft of the Clam adapter- not all auger shafts are the same.

[Bugeyes]

Additional thought that no one addressed yet. The diameter of your auger plays a role. If you typically fish holes 6-7" or less then truly no reason to use anything other than your construction drill (milwaukee is tough to beat). However if you like to fish bigger holes, as the ice gets thicker and/or slushy (berry), then a construction drill can become difficult. A dedicated electric ice auger of the same larger diameter (say 8") will work much better.

For me a 6" nils paired with my milwaukee covers 96.238% of my ice fishing.

[joatmon]

I used a Milwaukee Fuel 18 with Nils auger for a couple of years and loved it. Wanting to go even lighter, I bought a Strikemaster laser lite 8” this year, paired with the same drill. I LOVE it. It is so light and cuts like a hot knife through butter. One caution - there is a set screw that can work it’s way loose. Take an Allen wrench and tighten occasionally.

As a bonus, the drill can be separated from the auger and used with an adapter to drive and remove ice anchors for tents.

[JeepNut]

So unfortunately I just bought the Milwaukee M12 drill with batteries and charger. So I went and looked up the prices on what some of you have:
M18 drill with two 5AH batteries. $300
Clam plate with gear reduction. $170
Nils 6" auger. $140
That comes to $610 which is about in the middle of the dedicated augers. Maybe I'll have to watch for some used parts.

[BearLakeFishGuy]

You can get a manual auger at Sportsman's for $59. Then get a cordless drill with lots of torque. Personally, I see other guys using $300+ Milwaukee drills, but I have the Lowe's FLEX brand has even more torque and costs a fraction of the Milwaukee (about $200) and mine came with two batteries (5amp, 2.5amp), charger and case. I have used it last year and this year to turn my 8", Mora auger that is over 35 years old. It cuts as fast as any other auger out there. Its light and the best part is the drill can be used the rest of the year on other projects, whereas a specialized auger (Ion, etc.) has only one function which is to drill ice holes. I'll never own another power auger. There is ABSOLUTELY NO NEED to spend big bucks on fancy named augers or expensive drills, when a cheap, basic auger and a high-torque drill will do the job. If you have any questions, ask me! I don't need a K-drill, Nils, pistol bit, etc. Just keep your blades sharp and don't band 'em on the ice.....ever.

---

So unfortunately I just bought the Milwaukee M12 drill with batteries and charger. So I went and looked up the prices on what some of you have:
M18 drill with two 5AH batteries.  $300
Clam plate with gear reduction.    $170
Nils 6" auger.                              $140
That comes to $610 which is about in the middle of the dedicated augers.  Maybe I'll have to watch for some used parts.

DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY.  Get a $59 manual auger, adapter ($20 on line), and FLEX brand drill from Lowes ($208).  I had the old 8" auger so it was free.  My friend made an adapter out of a grade 8 bolt (free) to fit into my drill.  I used a round piece of 1/4" plywood to ensure it won't go through the hole if it came out of my drill (never has in two years).  So for about $200, I'm drilling with the best of them and can use my drill all year long.  Check the torque on the drill you buy and make sure its enough.  The Milwaukee's are great, but the FLEX is even better for way less money.
(you forgot about the cost of a charger for the Milwaukee drill too).

[meancuznalfy]

I got lucky and had a Milwaukee tool and 5 ah battery and charger, I found a brand new drill with battery online for $179, looked at cheaper augers, but figured I'd just go all out an get what I wanted, didn't want any regrets later, that was $210, so I'm $400 into my setup, quite a bit cheaper than a dedicated electric auger, I you watch on line, check pawn shops you might find some deals.

[catdaddygar]

Keep your eyes open I got my 10 inch ION at sportsman s for $625,00 on a close out about this time of year. I don't know why anybody would want to mess with a 6 inch hole ice fishing that would freeze over as fast as you cleared it. I also have drill motors for when I need to drill at home.

[DanzTuna]

Many of us using drill/auger systems already had a high torque drill which we used around the shop, etc. and just decided to use it for ice fishing by switching over from hand auguring to utilizing an adapter to mate it to the auger.