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Slick --

Yeah, ol' DJ is a real winner. It is hard to find anyone who admits to voting for him. Kinda funny. wink.gif

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Last year i bought a Jiffy Stealth 8" auger. Reason i went with an 8", is a 10" is a perfect size for a Vexilar to fall thru. And me being a little accident prone, decided to buy an 8", The best auger i have ever had the privlilidge to use, and i have used plenty. no primer on these or anything, pull the little yellow check valve out, give 1-2 pulls and you are ready to drill. Jiffy Stealth is definatley worth your money!!

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I bought an eskimo late last winter. The reason I bought it was price. The place I bought it from had all 3 brands. A good friend of mine had bought and eskimo 4 years prior and he's been real happy with his. He had trouble right away with the throttle but they sent him a whole new throttle assembly for free.

I got mine (a 10 inch, 3 HP) for under $300. I can't remember the exact price but I also got the extension and auger bag and some oil and I think it was just over $300. A buddy of mine sent me back to the store once I told him of the price and I ended up getting him the same deal. I wasn't happy with the Eskimo right out of the box because it didn't run good. I brought it home and adjusted on the carb and it ran great the rest of the year. It cut as fast as my other buddies brand new 8" strike master. It is plenty heavy but that's fine, it is a 3 horse. The price was right for a 3HP and 10" auger so I bought it and so far I've been very satisfied.

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I have the 3hp engine. When I first got it, it was tough to start but I have made some adjustments and it starts in the first 3 pulls now. I cuts well, has a lot of torque like someone mentioned earlier, but it is a tad on the heavy side. It is not a problem for me, but for fatigue's sake, I wouldn't mind having a 2hp model. Either way, you'll be happy, I believe Jiffy makes a 2hp model, but I could be wrong. The engines are made by the same company so that shouldn't wiegh much in your decision, they are both fine but I would still check into the Nils, I've seen video of them run and they were cutting 2.5 holes to every 1 compared to a Jiffy model 30, I believe they are faster than Strikemasters as well. The good thing about them is you can take the engine off and use it as a hand auger.

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Fisherdog --

I was just at Mhd scheels and they have Jiffy stealth stx (I think) but it is an eight inch. I have always used the 10 inch. I think you can get a 2 hp 10 inch, but do I really need a 10 inch. I like the wider holes, but I don't know. I almost allways fish for 'eyes.

Do you think the 2 hp 10 inch jiffy stealth STX would be under powered? confused.gif

I can't get past the strike master and the fact that it looks like a kid's toy. Plastic and easy to break. I know it cuts fast, but I guess I worry ...

Maybe the Stealth wouldn't be as much of an upgrade over my Jiffy model 30?????

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Howdy fellow Hawleywooders!

Getting the boat put away today and getting ice stuff ready soon.

I used to be both a Jiffy and Strikemaster dealer and the one thing I haven't seen in this thread is "what are you going to use your new auger for?"

Permanent house (recutting holes) or portable (always new holes)? It's been a while since I sold them but the speed (RPM's) of the auger was a determining factor. The Jiffys were faster and threw ice all over the house while the Strikemaster would cut an old hole and pull the ice up in a nice little pile. I've had a 3HP jiffy for years and like it but if I was redrilling I'd get a 2HP Strikemaster. The way they run all has to do with the care they get. Mine never gets Stabil, drained fuel or new plugs and still runs OK, but then again I know who has to go through it if it quits too!

Maybe on the ice Sunday huh?

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I can't give you any feedback on if a 2hp 10" is underpowered because I've never seen one in use. I would, however, think that they wouldn't make them if the were underpowered and didn't work well. Depending on the torque an RPM, I could see a slight disadvantage in opening an old hole. I believe, though, chippers are better for opening old holes, anyone with some insight?

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I wouldn’t get to worried about speed. The difference between the models is going to be so small that it wont matter. Most people go out on the lake, pop two holes and fish for awhile. What do you gain by cutting your holes 1 or even 10 seconds faster then the next guy?

When I first got my Strike Master I would enjoy racing my fishing partner's Jiffy or whatever they were using. I won a lot more than I lost...but the difference was so small...that it really was nothing to brag about. So forget about the speed unless we are talking minutes instead of a few seconds.

Now comes size. I enjoy my 10 inch auger as I like to have a bigger hole to look down and I always have one of my flashers running. With that said, you don’t need 10 inch hole...8 inch is plenty big. The bottom line is get what you want!! If you want a 10 inch, get it. If you don’t, you will always wish you did and not fully enjoy what you have. To be honest, I could be happy with either size. Probably would have saved a few cell phones, lures and misc. items from falling down the hole if I would have gone with a smaller size.

I was at scheels and fleet this past week and checked out the Stealth. It looks like a darn nice auger! I think you would be very happy with it. I thought it looked well built but a little heavy for what I like. This brings up the point of what type of fishing style you use. I like to run and gun in my portable...the less weight I have to lug around..the better. If, I didn’t fish out of a portable, I wouldn’t care about the weight issue....and to be honest, in the long run, we are only talking about 5-10lbs difference. I also don’t re-drill too many of my holes. I do re-drill sometimes...and I have never had a problem.

I think the Stealth would be a HUGE upgrade over the model 30. However, if your model 30 is doing the job....great, stick with it. I have family members that use the Model 30. I think it’s a fine auger...just a little too touchy and high maintenance for my me. I don’t like messing with chokes, adjusting carbs or pumping a primer.

Here is the last of my Dr. Phil advise for ya. I get the feeling, by reading your comments, you sorta like the Strike Master but are not 100% sold on it due to its “plastic” parts. That is a legitimate feeling. No matter what I, or any other Strike Master owner tells ya, you probably will always have that feeling. It’s a lot of money to spend on something that you are not completely sold on. SO, go with your gut! You seem pretty interested in the Stealth.... GO AND BUY IT!! In a few weeks we can read your post about the best purchase you ever made. grin.gifgrin.gif

Cliffy.

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Dahitman44, I am a Strikemaster(10 inch) owner and I will simply not go to another brand because of there customer service record alone. The guys are the epitome of customer service! Just this last week I brought in my Bro-in-Laws hand held depth finder that gave misreadings last year. The guy took it another kid walked in back and I was out the door in less then 1 minute with a brand new unit no questions asked. There are other times I brought my auger and these guys took care of it right there. I can not say enough good things about these guys. Everytime the wife and I pass them I say "Those are the guys that made my auger". She says "I know because you say that everytime we go pass them".LOL

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Quote:

I wouldn’t get to worried about speed. The difference between the models is going to be so small that it wont matter. Most people go out on the lake, pop two holes and fish for awhile. What do you gain by cutting your holes 1 or even 10 seconds faster then the next guy?

When I first got my Strike Master I would enjoy racing my fishing partner's Jiffy or whatever they were using. I won a lot more than I lost...


As in my first reply, I was talking about RPM's....not time it takes to cut a hole and YES, speed (RPM's) does make a differance in how much slush gets thrown around inside a house and all over your ankles. A faster turning auger simply throws slush further. TIME has nothing to do with it.

I've seen slower (RPM's) augers finish a hole faster then a faster (RPM's) auger because of their design and blade sharpness. Beleive me...point and blade sharpness, pitch, angle and condition all have a lot to do with TIME it takes to drill a hole. Just drill in to the bottom of the lake once crazy.gif and see how long your next hole takes.

By the way...also take a tape measure with to see how thick of ice you can drill before having to buy an extension. Measure from the bottom of the gear case to the outside edge of the blade. There is a difference.

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Relax. I was responding to Dahittmans question to "Joe" about how fast the auger cuts ice...I thought he was refering to the time it takes to cut a hole..not RPMs. grin.gif

The point I was trying to make is that there isnt that much of a difference...enough that would really matter in the over all picture...in my opinion....and I am refering to the amount of time it takes to cut a hole..not rpms.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I thought I should tell you guys what I decided to get. I picked up the Strikemaster two blade. The red one. I can't wait to try it out. Today should be the day.

BTW -- Who needs a Jiffy ... Mine is 4-sale. wink.gif

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10" strikemaster lazer mag is the best cutting tool I ever owned. But once the blades go a little dull all you do is spin on top of the ice. But Jiffy's spin so fast ans spew slush all over the place I can't stand walking around the rest of the day with stiff frozen pants. Good choice on the strikemaster.

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It worked well in it's maiden voyage, but I had a tough time keeping it going right away.

Thoughts?

I also was too excited to cut my holes and I flooded it. I was used to my cold-blooded Jiffy. crazy.gif

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I remember when mine was new it was like that. I just let her warm up for a while,and then she took off. Sucker has a lot of torque doen't it? Your arms really feel it after a while.

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I have a Strikemaster too, it says in the manual to let it idle for a minute or two before cutting holes. Mine always works fine.

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  • Your Responses - Share & Have Fun :)

    • Brianf.
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