robert Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 I bought a normark swede hand auger and tried it out tonite. Managed to get down through a foot of ice and it stopped cutting, more shaving. really weird. Can anyone offer any suggestions? can the blades dull that fast? blade angles off? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birchy Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 I bought a normark swede hand auger and tried it out tonite. Managed to get down through a foot of ice and it stopped cutting, more shaving. really weird. Can anyone offer any suggestions? can the blades dull that fast? blade angles off? You might try posting this on iceshanty.com instead. You'll probably get alot more help there. Off the top of my head.. sometimes certain layers of ice are alot harder than the rest, and it feels like you're not cutting through anymore. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tungsten Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 Not a real pro here but I've had that too,starts out cutting well then at a certain depth it stops.I always thought it was the shavings getting in the way so i clean out the hole by hand.Sometimes helps. Get one of those adapters so you can use a cordless drill they work great.With a powerful enough drill you can push pretty hard and drill 20" deep holes no problem.Bass Pro has them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
troutlover Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 ya i seen one in action today and they are sweet! i think it did 30 holes with plenty of juice left. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert Posted January 2, 2010 Author Share Posted January 2, 2010 went to walmart to look at another one, and my blades are dull already. need to get another set of blades and a sharpener to go along with it but the walmart was sold out of everything. stupid me can't find the reciept and i threw the box out already. Just went out with a flashlight to check the hole I made (didn't bring one before and drilled the hole in the dark) the ice was really dirty near the bottom of the hole and the ice around the hole was almost brown. wonder if it's gritty or sandy and it killed the blades. i'm at alberta beach right now on lac st anne. thanks. i'll check out iceshanty.com. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fish4trout Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 went to walmart to look at another one, and my blades are dull already. need to get another set of blades and a sharpener to go along with it but the walmart was sold out of everything. stupid me can't find the reciept and i threw the box out already. Just went out with a flashlight to check the hole I made (didn't bring one before and drilled the hole in the dark) the ice was really dirty near the bottom of the hole and the ice around the hole was almost brown. wonder if it's gritty or sandy and it killed the blades. i'm at alberta beach right now on lac st anne. Sounds like you drilled into the bottom, might want to drill out a little further next time . As for the return, buy a new set of blades(keep receipt!) bring the dull set of blades with the new receipt. Good luck out icefishing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bloom Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 Try not to cut pre drilled holes also. I know it's tempting to see a hole that may only be half frozen, but I've found the ice to be really uneven and tough on the blades. Always start a new hole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert Posted January 2, 2010 Author Share Posted January 2, 2010 Sounds like you drilled into the bottom, might want to drill out a little further next time . As for the return, buy a new set of blades(keep receipt!) bring the dull set of blades with the new receipt. Good luck out icefishing! we were a good 150 feet off shore, in the summertime there should be at least 5 feet of water at that point but oh well, maybe the lake was lower than i thought. lesson learned good idea with returning the blades tho. heading to devils tomorrow when i get a new set of blades, water is clean there and i know the depths. my fav lake for sheer numbers of pike. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pokerfish Posted January 2, 2010 Share Posted January 2, 2010 done a lot of ice fishing in SK. Was out on Lake Dief for the rainbows, and my big (10in, 3hp) drill had big trouble after the second hole. Had sharpened the blades just prior to the trip. Tried a bunch of things before I thought to recheck the blades - totally dull. Apparently a lot of blowing sand gets trapped on the surface of that lake, and probably most lakes on the prairies, and wrecks havoc with blades. I was in 15ft of water, so I knew it wasn't bottom sludge. Carry extra blades. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WesG Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 the ice was really dirty near the bottom of the hole and the ice around the hole was almost brown. wonder if it's gritty or sandy and it killed the blades. Thats your answer right there. Sand or dirt in the ice will kill a set of blades in a couple turns. You always want to be sure the ice is decently clear of debris like that. I made the mistake myself once as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WesG Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 As for the return, buy a new set of blades(keep receipt!) bring the dull set of blades with the new receipt. Good luck out icefishing! So when they put them back on the shelf, the next guy thats buys them gets dull blades that dont work? You sir get the man of the year award, but its alight, its only january 2nd. I am sure I will read something more stupid and inconsiderate between now and december 31st. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert Posted January 3, 2010 Author Share Posted January 3, 2010 I hunted through hell and back to try to get a set of blades for that auger. crappy tire in spruce grove, then west edmonton, and finally south. walmart had ONE set on the rack but when I took a better look - someone had opened the package and stole one. canadian tire had a rack full of them... i'll just have to be more aware of where i'm drilling holes and check every now and then as to what i'm drilling into. won't be making that mistake again. i'm going to keep the blades i took off, take them somewhere to get sharpened. thanks all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4d7 Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 I hunted through hell and back to try to get a set of blades for that auger. crappy tire in spruce grove, then west edmonton, and finally south. walmart had ONE set on the rack but when I took a better look - someone had opened the package and stole one. canadian tire had a rack full of them... i'll just have to be more aware of where i'm drilling holes and check every now and then as to what i'm drilling into. won't be making that mistake again. i'm going to keep the blades i took off, take them somewhere to get sharpened. thanks all. If you buy those hockey skate sharpening stones you can sharpen your own blades. keep the stone flat with the blade angle and sharping it doing a clockwise motion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robert Posted January 4, 2010 Author Share Posted January 4, 2010 Took the old blades to a wet stone and got an edge back on them. not great but should suffice for getting through the ice. Put the new blades on, managed 9 holes today through about a foot and a half of clean ice without problem. Murder on the arms but sure beats an axe, wouldn't want to drill through much thicker. Makes one realize how out of shape they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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