Power auger head advice

[gone_fishin]

I have a Jiffy power head that obviously doesn't work (cause they are all garbage these days), and i don't particularly want to put the money into getting it fixed again if it's just gonna break down again after a few holes - It has already been in for repairs 3 times. the last time they could not fix the problem.

i know stores like Home Depot will sell Power heads for Earth augers. has anyone tried these out on the ice? i would obviously be putting my 10" Jiffy auger blade on the new power head for drilling through ice... just wondering if that is even an option. I would think as long as the auger blade fits on the power head - and drills the proper direction, it shouldn't be a problem???

any and all advice is welcome!

Thanks in advance!

[DRIFTER_016]

What you need to remember is Jiffy augers turn counter clockwise while the bulk of dirt and ice augers turn clockwise.

Just something to think about.

I have a Takana, Eskimo and Strikemaster and all three turn clockwise.

Made sure before I bought them so I can interchange between them.

It may be possible to use the gear case off your Jiffy powerhead on another powerhead but don't hold me to that.

[Fisherman]

1 hour ago, gone_fishin said:

I have a Jiffy power head that obviously doesn't work (cause they are all garbage these days), and i don't particularly want to put the money into getting it fixed again if it's just gonna break down again after a few holes - It has already been in for repairs 3 times. the last time they could not fix the problem.

i know stores like Home Depot will sell Power heads for Earth augers. has anyone tried these out on the ice? i would obviously be putting my 10" Jiffy auger blade on the new power head for drilling through ice... just wondering if that is even an option. I would think as long as the auger blade fits on the power head - and drills the proper direction, it shouldn't be a problem???

any and all advice is welcome!

Thanks in advance!

What was wrong with the auger in the first place?

[AKRISONER]

omg dont even get me started on jiffys. Ours is a year old and died. Went in for service and they replaced the carb...fresh from the shop, the air supply hose cracked and fell off, we taped it back together and then tried to put the cover back on and the screws stripped out of the hole. Jerry rigged the cover back on, took it out saturday,  it wouldnt idle so i had to run down the lake with my finger blipping the throttle to keep it going, the damn thing started over heating, melted the entire cover and unbeknownst to me, lit my #@%@ING survival suit on fire, ruined it (thats expensive) and then the thing wouldnt start again...Im buying a new auger next year...and surival suit...yay for me BUYER BEWARE JIFFY IS PURE TRASH

I kind of wish that the thing burnt me severly so i could sue the $%Wtards

 

good luck man, let me know what you discover, i might end up doing the same thing.

Edited March 11, 2019 by AKRISONER

[DRIFTER_016]

Yup, their augers are about as good as their popcorn!!!!     

 

[Fisherman]

Unfortunate but we know where they are made now. 

[porkpie]

If you live in southern Ontario, and don’t need 24 inch extensions on average, the solution is simple.  Switch to an electric auger.  Pick your flavour, wether a dedicated electric or a drill combo.  I believe they even make a 10 inch electric now.  Our gasser has sat in the barn for 3 seasons now and hasn’t been out once.  The electric has been better in every respect.  I drilled nearly 3 holes to one against a guy with a jiffy a few weeks a back.  The guys up north with 4 feet or more of ice need gas. Down this way electric will do anything you could ask and faster than a gasser!

[AKRISONER]

Heavily considering going the drill route especially because my rigid has a lifetime warranty. Do they still punch 8 inch holes?

[gone_fishin]

Thanks for all the input guys. i guess my jiffy blade will not transfer to another power head, i was not aware that it was a counter clockwise turn. what a bunch of jerks! lol

2 minutes ago, AKRISONER said:

Heavily considering going the drill route especially because my rigid has a lifetime warranty. Do they still punch 8 inch holes?

I have been using my DeWalt 20V Max Li-Ion drill paired with my 8" fin-bore III. it works well enough... but i was on simcoe this past saturday and that much ice is really hard on the drill. started to overheat during drilling the second hole. keep in mind, Simcoe does have close to 30 inches of ice right now.. so take it for what it is.

[DRIFTER_016]

2 hours ago, gone_fishin said:

I have been using my DeWalt 20V Max Li-Ion drill paired with my 8" fin-bore III. it works well enough... but i was on simcoe this past saturday and that much ice is really hard on the drill. started to overheat during drilling the second hole. keep in mind, Simcoe does have close to 30 inches of ice right now.. so take it for what it is.

If you're going the drill route make sure the drill is brushless or they will burn up in a hurry.

Best option is the Milwaukee Fuel.

FYI be careful with it. A guy on FB had it catch on his glove and it dang near ripped his thumb off!!!!

Bleeding like a stuck pig and the x-ray of the bones was not pretty.  ?

Best to use a drill plate too rather than just drill and bit combo.

Edited March 12, 2019 by DRIFTER_016

[gone_fishin]

2 hours ago, DRIFTER_016 said:

If you're going the drill route make sure the drill is brushless or they will burn up in a hurry.

Best option is the Milwaukee Fuel.

FYI be careful with it. A guy on FB had it catch on his glove and it dang near ripped his thumb off!!!!

Bleeding like a stuck pig and the x-ray of the bones was not pretty.  ?

Best to use a drill plate too rather than just drill and bit combo.

Yeah, after using the drill and bit combo a few times, i can see how it could be a little dangerous. caution will be used!!!

[NAW]

I've seen Stilhl power heads used on ice augers.

 

The barrie ice fishing tournamet guys rent the power heads and mount them on a custom rig for drilling hundreds of holes before the tournament.  They mount it on a custom built rig they tow behind 4 wheelers. 

 

Might be an option. 

 

I sold my strike master last year, and used the money to by a Dewalt XT 20 volt brushless drill.  I am never going back to gas.  Ever.  

[NAW]

2 hours ago, DRIFTER_016 said:

If you're going the drill route make sure the drill is brushless or they will burn up in a hurry.

Best option is the Milwaukee Fuel.

FYI be careful with it. A guy on FB had it catch on his glove and it dang near ripped his thumb off!!!!

Bleeding like a stuck pig and the x-ray of the bones was not pretty.  ?

Best to use a drill plate too rather than just drill and bit combo.

That happened to me this winter.  Rubber coated gloves, and the auger caught it.  I thought I broke my thumb.  It was 2 months ago, and its still sore.   Lesson learned.  Wont to that again!! 

[gone_fishin]

11 minutes ago, NAW said:

I sold my strike master last year, and used the money to by a Dewalt XT 20 volt brushless drill.  I am never going back to gas.  Ever.  

I hear ya... i'd much rather do the battery power option... was just seeing if there was an alternative out there where i could still utilize my 10" jiffy blade.

[Sinker]

Whats the problem with your jiffy? I had the same one for 23 years. Finally let me down at the end of last year, so I bought a brand new ion. I hate it. Its let me down on the number of holes it will drill so far. Pretty expensive unit to drill less than 20 10" holes. I'm not impressed. Shoulda paid half as much and stuck with gas. 

S. 

[gone_fishin]

27 minutes ago, Sinker said:

Whats the problem with your jiffy?

You answered your own question! lol. seems that all of the new jiffy's are junk?!?!

There is an air leak (again) somewhere up past the fuel lines. I've had it in, and the guy couldn't fix it.

I had an older model Jiffy years ago that i didn't really have any problems with. sold that to "upgrade" to a 10" auger. Whoops!!! The new auger has been nothing but problematic. I've had it in to repair 3 times and the thing probably hasn't even punched 50 holes.

[Sinker]

1 minute ago, gone_fishin said:

You answered your own question! lol. seems that all of the new jiffy's are junk?!?!

There is an air leak (again) somewhere up past the fuel lines. I've had it in, and the guy couldn't fix it.

I had an older model Jiffy years ago that i didn't really have any problems with. sold that to "upgrade" to a 10" auger. Whoops!!! The new auger has been nothing but problematic. I've had it in to repair 3 times and the thing probably hasn't even punched 50 holes.

No, I wish I had another jiffy. I don't like the ION. Less than 20 holes and its dead. Useless.  $900 green lawn ornament. 

 

S. 

[misfish]

Im lov,n my ole milwakky fuel with the clam plate and 6: drill bit. Whities dont seem to mind either. Go small,or stay home. LOL

 

Handle is on stand by bye.

[Sinker]

I like the big holes. Makes fishing a lot easier. I had a friend out last year and we couldn't fit his laker through an 8" hole. Yes, on simcoe.....and yeah, I've pulled LOTS of big fish thru an 8" hole, but this one would not fit. HUGE!!! It was a heart breaker. 

S. 

[DRIFTER_016]

1 hour ago, Sinker said:

I like the big holes. Makes fishing a lot easier. I had a friend out last year and we couldn't fit his laker through an 8" hole. Yes, on simcoe.....and yeah, I've pulled LOTS of big fish thru an 8" hole, but this one would not fit. HUGE!!! It was a heart breaker. 

S. 

Siamese or clover leaf your holes then.

 

[porkpie]

I set up my buddies throw away 8 inch auger.  Welded a centre point into it using a half inch spade bit that I ground down.  I’m running a Milwaukee fuel.  It will spin an 8 inch.  Over 2 feet of ice on Simcoe last week and I didn’t have to swap batteries once using 5ah with my 6 inch and we punched many holes.  The 8 inch and I would’ve had to swap batteries. It don’t matter I have 3.  Never even been close to overheating through that amount of ice, and we always punch 6 holes every time we stop.  2 each for fishing and 1 for sonar or camera.  Don’t believe it, send me a PM I’ll be on cooks bay with my kids tomorrow afternoon, and happy to let anyone try it! With the clam plate it’s the way to go, light weight and very effective!  Can’t speak to any of the other electrics though.  There is a reason there are so many Milwaukee fanboys!

[misfish]

25 minutes ago, porkpie said:

There is a reason there are so many Milwaukee fanboys!

Yup

 

I ran an 8" with no issues. As long as you cleaned the whole out while drilling. I got probly 20 holes through 18". I now run a 6" ,as I only fish whities. If I go deep for lakers," which I hardly do " I do side by side. 6"  Drilled 25 holes today. Light bar when I got home, 3. That was through 26" of ice. You want power and weight,drag that gasser around. I will bet,I will be drilled,set up and fishing,well before any gasser owner.

[DRIFTER_016]

16 minutes ago, misfish said:

Yup

 

I ran an 8" with no issues. As long as you cleaned the whole out while drilling. I got probly 20 holes through 18". I now run a 6" ,as I only fish whities. If I go deep for lakers," which I hardly do " I do side by side. 6"  Drilled 25 holes today. Light bar when I got home, 3. That was through 26" of ice. You want power and weight,drag that gasser around. I will bet,I will be drilled,set up and fishing,well before any gasser owner.

Even through 64" of ice with a 10"?  

 

Edited March 12, 2019 by DRIFTER_016

[misfish]

With an extension, you bet.

[KawarthaAngler]

14 hours ago, DRIFTER_016 said:

Even through 64" of ice with a 10"?  

 

If your auger isn't at least as tall as you ... then you aren't a true ice angler!