# What not to do with ur auger.



## peple of the perch (Sep 13, 2004)

I have bought a few new blades for my auger. The reason for the auger becoming so dull that it can hardly cut. Is poor handling of the auger. No one likes to spend 3-4 minutes or longer drilling a hole in a lake. You get tired and sweaty. Which will just make you feel colder. Here are some things you might want to watch out for. When caring for your auger.

1) Keep your blades dry. When the blades get rusty they tend to not cut as well. Also there is tetanus. I usually wipe down my blades after every trip.

2 ) Always keep your auger blades well oiled . I like to use a small piece of sponge and just rub down my blades with the oil. I am not sure this is a necessity but I like to do it anyways.

3) Never ever try to reopen frozen holes. Just drill next to it if that is the area that you want to fish. Re opening old holes with your auger will dull it dramatically. It is also harder to reopen a hole than it is to drill a new one some times.

4) Keep your cover on after your finish using it. This is both for safety and protection of the blades.

5) Do not use your auger as a walking stick or to chip open holes that are half frozen. My dad does uses it as a walking stick and that is one of the reasons why I had to buy a few new blades. Even with the cover on. You can be damaging the blades. A sideward banging to a hole will also damage the blades.

6) Don't put things in your upper chest pockets. Those ice fishing holes are like vacuums and love to suck everything that falls out of those pockets in to the water. Putting things in your pockets will not dull the blades of the auger.  It is just another precaution I thought I would add.

The auger is meant for drilling straight down and nothing else. Hopefully this will save some of you from dulling your blades to no end. If anyone has anything else they would like to add go ahead.


----------



## Lewis (Apr 5, 2004)

I will add...NEVER tap your auger blades on the ice to remove slush!
It will dull them instantly.
I have never done this,but a guy I used to ice fish with ruined my new blades twice.


----------



## bkr43050 (Apr 5, 2004)

I bought my first auger last winter in hopes of starting to ice fish and I have not put the auger to the test yet. Hopefully in another week or so I will get to try it out. I will try to treat it with real care as it sounds like I should.


----------



## liquidsoap (Oct 22, 2005)

Good Post peple..
To bad you did not write it yourself though.
No spelling errors!


----------



## JIG (Nov 2, 2004)

I stick mine in a bucket. Never half to touch the thing but by the handle. Just find one thats snug and thick.


----------



## krustydawg (Apr 26, 2004)

liquidsoap said:


> Good Post peple..
> To bad you did not write it yourself though.
> No spelling errors!


He wrote it in Microsoft Word, spell checked the document, then cut and pasted it.


----------



## squid_1 (Jun 2, 2005)

I thought tapping them on the ice called the fish to you!


----------



## liquidsoap (Oct 22, 2005)

krustydawg said:


> He wrote it in Microsoft Word, spell checked the document, then cut and pasted it.


Thats a good idea, a lot of people on this site need to do that.
Either way it was a good post!  
Thats most likely why it took me 25 minutes to drill a hole with my auger.


----------



## krustydawg (Apr 26, 2004)

liquidsoap said:


> Thats most likely why it took me 25 minutes to drill a hole with my auger.


Either that or you need to get in the weight room !


----------



## papaperch (Apr 12, 2004)

One you missed when starting hole do not jam down on the ice. gently position over where you intend to drill. Banging the auger down will instantly take your edge off the blades

Also if you have a Lazer auger it will not dull the blades if you drill an old hole.


----------



## peple of the perch (Sep 13, 2004)

dbl post....


----------



## peple of the perch (Sep 13, 2004)

liquidsoap said:


> Good Post peple..
> To bad you did not write it yourself though.
> No spelling errors!


WHAT!!! IT TOOK ME A HALF HOUR TO TYPE THAT. Like I said I am working on my typing and am getting a lot better at it. I am trying to punctuate were i need to and am trying to capitalize when needed. I'm so proud of myself :')


----------



## hardwaterfan (Apr 6, 2004)

you guys actually let other people use your auger??? 

i took a guy ice fishing, let him use the old auger. cause i knew. bam, down on the ice to try to "start" it (doesnt do any good anyhow) then i look and he's drilling the whole auger in a "circle" instead of straight down. this was after i showed him how to do it, people think theyre augering dirt or something. (this person is not a member of this site, he is a guy i know from work )

good post peple.

respect those blades! as heavy as a brick and razor sharp.


----------



## peple of the perch (Sep 13, 2004)

I have also had a friend that dulled the blades. They did drill to shallow and kept drilling up the dirt. I should of put never let anyone use your auger.


----------



## liquidsoap (Oct 22, 2005)

krustydawg said:


> Either that or you need to get in the weight room !


That too!
I would have better luck with a big rock, or a shovel!


----------



## CHOPIQ (Apr 6, 2004)

I have a Mora auger and found out the hard way, trying to reopen a hole that was drilled already is the hardest thing on auger blades. You would think it would be easy but its harder than drilling a new hole. After rereading this post I'm glad everyone knows I'm talking about ice fishing and mnot something else, this could be misconstrued...lol.


----------



## snag (Dec 27, 2005)

good post peple one thing you forgot,the price of new mora blades are steep,the price this year at gander are 17 bucks and some change for the eight inch. heck they had new moras for twenty nine dollars. the fella at mog-bait n tackle told me a couple yrs ago he had a guy that would resharpen old blades for the mora but i never dropped them off,so i don,t know if that still is going on.


----------



## snake69 (Sep 26, 2005)

Must be doin' something right...had mine either 5 or 6 yrs and still have the original blades and they cut fine. Maybe I'm just not getting out enough......  
PS ...to OGF staff, we need another icon...perhaps an auger! We have boobers, planer boards etc, hows about an ice fishin' icon!!


----------



## WalleyeJones (Feb 15, 2006)

Mine's an ol' 1993 3HP 10" Eskimo I bought off a guy in Duluth, MN in 2001. He replaced the blades in 2000. I've drilled many a hole with 'em and they'll still cut your finger open. I lived in MN for two years and often found ice over 3' thick (had to use an extension). The day you seen that in Ohio is the day there'll be peace in the Middle East.

I had an old hand auger and attempted to resharpen the blades on it. Man...you got to get that angle just right or you'll just sit and spin all day. 

I've never had any problems re-drilling a hole, but I think my auger could go thru just about anything. FYI, the clearer the ice...the stronger (and tougher to drill thru).


----------



## JimmyZ (May 18, 2004)

How long should it take to drill a hole thru good ice? I only ice fished the last year we had good ice and remember having to lay on it pretty good. I did get through pretty fast but it was still a lot of work.


----------



## peple of the perch (Sep 13, 2004)

You'll know if ur auger is bad. It will not grip that well and will be sliding around when you first try to drill. U should be able to drill fast if it is good.


----------



## Steel Cranium (Aug 22, 2005)

snake69 said:


> PS ...to OGF staff, we need another icon...perhaps an auger! We have boobers, planer boards etc, hows about an ice fishin' icon!!


Boobers? Where is that icon? What would 'boobers' signify -- a great fishin' day??

I have found that on crowded lakes (like Wallace), it's best to drill holes for others as opposed to letting them use your auger. I've had a few blades damaged by folks who wanted to use my auger to reopen a frozen hole, banging on it to get things started.


----------



## krustydawg (Apr 26, 2004)

Steel Cranium said:


> Boobers? Where is that icon? What would 'boobers' signify -- a great fishin' day??


I know what BOOBERS signify for me and it sure ain't a great fishin' day ! LOL


----------

