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Recently I decided to sell my 8 inch hand auger and buy a 5 inch. I havent yet used my 5" and probably won't till next year. I bought it becaus my 8" auger just worked me to death. I am hoping that my new 5" will be MUCH easier.
Have any of you had experience with diferent size augers to tell if the smaller ones are a lot easier? I hope so. I'd like to hear your points of view.
Some of you are wondering why I don't just buy a power auger. Well, right now, lots of reasons; cost (I'm broke), weight in the sled, space in the sled, dependability, and most of my fishing buddies have powere augers so I can use theirs.
I have been concerned that maybe the 5" hole will be way too small but then I seen [url "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2pa_keWYMMc&feature=fvw"]this video[/url] and I think for most of my fishing, I should be good.
But anyway, until I get out there on the ice, do you guys have any experience in the different sizes and how much more effort it takes for an 8" vs a 5" ??
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Coot,
In Colorado we had a 5" and it was easier to drill. A five will have to remove about 1/2 of the ice of a 8", so it will be a lot less work. I had to get rid of the 5" in Colorado because we did have some trouble with the line and landing larger fish. In we bought an 8" eskimo and it was crap.....did not las long @ all (yes I know some have had then and they are the best thing in the world) but it did allow for less line breaks at the hole and you can reach down with an arm. In Utah the last 2 years we have not landed the size of fish in Colorado. I know that this is bc we have not been fishing for them. For us I think a 5" would be great, and I would not have lost any fish thru the ice in the last 2 years if I would have had one. I will stick with the 8, but thats because I haven't had problems drilling yet, and I hope that when I do that I can get a gas auger and that will solve the problem. I think you will be fine with it and for the few huge fish that will not fit you will be able to adapt and get them out anyways. Good luck coot, and I look forward to some PV muskie action soon,
Shawn M
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[#502800]I went from an 8 in. hand auger to a 6 in. hand auger with a drill attachment.....To drill the 6 in. hole manually is less than half the effort.......I bought a 19.2 volt lithium Ion drill and it will drill a dozen 6 in. holes, and does not weigh down the sled, and I still have the crank handle if I use the drill too much....The six inch holes are good for everything that I have ever brought up through a hole, and are perfect for sonar. [/#502800]
[#502800] If you have friends with power augers, don't worry about it. That's like having friends who tie flies.[/#502800]
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I posted about this earlier in the year.
If you do the math and multiply Pi times the radius squared.
for a 8" it would be (4x4)xPi or 3.141. This equals 50.25 square inches of ice being drilled.
for a 5" it would be (2.5x2.5) x3.141. This equals 19.63 square inches of ice being drilled.
Less than 1/2 the ice is being drilled so it should take less than 1/2 the effort.
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I bought a 6 inch Nils High Velocity Off set handle Auger after having used my 8 inch mora for about 20 years. Best thing i ever did. Highly recommend the Nils. I raced a gentleman with a 10 power auger and i drilled 2 and 1/2 holes before he got one done. Very little effort. My father in law is 71 and he drilled 4 holes in less then 3 minutes and wasn't tired at all.
GET the NILS!!!!
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Coot your going to like the twist of the 5" and it might surprise you that you'll be able to pull some fairly large critters though a hole of that diameter.
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You will notice quite a difference going from 8" to 5".
I have and 8", 7", and a 6". I use them all at some time or another during the season.
Early in the season I use the 8", as the ice thickens I will drop down to the the 7", and then the 6".
When I'm covering alot of area looking for fish the 6" is a life saver.
I really like my 6", but I do have to be a little more careful getting larger fish to turn up into the smaller diameter hole. Larger fish can also arc across the smaller hole which makes it more difficult coming up the hole. Do I lose more fish....perhaps, but there are always trade offs.
I better warn you that other people will notice how fast you drill a hole compared to their efforts. More than once people have commented on my upper body strength or my sharp blades...I just  and let them think what they want![:p]
Some day I'll buy a power auger...by then I'll be too old to pull it very far...
Enjoy your new auger!
IceAndFly
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One time I borrowed some guys 6" auger because my 8" auger lost a screw and would not work. We ended up pulling some 20 + inch fish through the 6" hole just like the 8" hole. I see no difference for your average fish, but the drilling sure was easier with the 6" auger.
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Thanks all for your feedback. I think my decission to get the 5 incher was a good one. Looking forward to giving it a try. I am pretty curious how it compares with my old Eskimo 8".
The one I got was the StrikeMaster Mora MD-5.
![[Image: morahandaugers.jpg]](http://www.strikemaster.com/images/augers/morahandaugers.jpg)
![[Image: mora_closeup.jpg]](http://www.strikemaster.com/images/augers/mora_closeup.jpg)
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who needs an auger when you can use a chainsaw....saw some guys on the gorge using one and got a good chuckle out of it [ ]
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yes the smaller diamiters work alot faster..when sharpened often..although i have a 5 inch and a six incch laser i cant tell the difference in which one is eisier..i gave my 8 ince one away..like you said itll work you bto death..ive recently got an electric but this is my past exsperience..good luuck
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[quote Old_Coot]Some of you are wondering why I don't just buy a power auger. Well, right now, lots of reasons; cost (I'm broke)[/quote]
...You've still got a Benjamin tucked away for this June right?...[cool]
As far as the auger size goes...I fished with Kent at Flaming Gorge earlier this year, and we used his 10" auger. We caught Pup Mac's that day. A couple weekends later I went again and took my 8" auger...and I did notice a difference with that size of fish. I definitely lost more at the hole. There was a learning curve however and by the end of the day we were not loosing them anymore. The smaller hole will take some getting used to, but you will tailor your technique to it and it won't cost you any fish.
Looking forward to catching them this summer NOT thru a hole!!!
P.S. Thanks for the video! I didn't realize I was famous.
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I used to N.ot have E.nough T.ime O.ff to go fishing. Then I retired. Now I have less time than I had before. Sheesh.
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Hey Ralph, we should make a quick trip up to Willard before the ice is gone and drill a few holes to check out that auger. I'm off for the rest of the week and would be willing to meet you after you get off work to give it a try. Heck, I'll even drive so it won't cost you anything, or if you want to do some fishing we could even go to East canyon[ ].
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[#0000ff] "... my 8" auger...and I did notice a difference with that size of fish. I definitely lost more at the hole."[/#0000ff]
I am thinking that if/when I fish for LARGE fish throught the ice, I will either 1) make sure that I take a power auger toting buddy along with me or 2) maybe get one of those ice saws and drill a triangle of three 5" holes and then use a saw to connect the dots. However, those ice saws are pretty pricy too.
[url "http://www.darkhousespearingsupply.com/product_info.php?cPath=61&products_id=83"] ![[Image: P1010002-1.JPG]](http://www.darkhousespearingsupply.com/images/P1010002-1.JPG) [/url]
Any of you have any experience with these ice saws?
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I've got a 4 inch Nils, and it goes through the ice fast and easily.
The small diameter hole hasn't been a problem, for bringing pan fish and the larger trout through. It's kind of a plus to have a small hole that you can't step into easily.
I'm 68 years young now, and the small diameter Nils has been great. I can drill as many holes as I need to, and don't have the problem of the extra weight of a power auger.
You've got the right idea going small diameter.
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I have used the ice saw you have pictured. I also used Rich (BLM's) and it worked great. Just don't force it and let it do the cutting. We drill three holes in a "cloverleaf" pattern then use the saw to cut out the ice chunck left between the holes. Works great. I've used them in Michigan for cutting spearing holes. Its the ONLY way to go.
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