8 or 10 inch auger
 

Hi, thinking of getting my dad a ion x auger for Christmas. Just wondering if there is any need to go 10 inch for ice fishing north central BC near Houston, or is 8 inch good?

Thanks
Matt

10 all the way !!!!

10" is awesome, love mine. Way easier to bring fish out of the ice with a bigger hole.

10

I would get him the 8 inch.

You only really need a 10 inch hole for catching monster pike, lakers etc which I doubt your dad in BC will be targeting. An 8 inch hole works plenty good for trout which is what I assume he primarily targets.

10 inch does make it a bit easier to get the fish up the hole and is nice if sight fishing in shallow water but there are downsides as well. Small to mid size fish can get turned around in the hole(which is more of an issue with trout). They are much easier to knock things into. They are large enough if you step in one you end up wet or with a broken ankle/leg. They are much slower to drill(56% more ice to remove) and require more powerful augers especially in thick hard ice.

I honestly wouldn't buy a 10 inch ion unless I lived somewhere that only gets like 8-12 inches of ice. They don't have enough juice for that size of blade once the ice gets thick and I have heard this from a couple sources as well as base it on my experience using an 8 inch version in 30 inches of ice. If you want a 10 inch auger you are much better off with a good gas auger or a propane one(and the Eskimo propane is 3 times better then the Jiffy for 10 inch holes). A 10 inch gas/propane auger is a lot heavier and tougher to handle compared to a 8 inch ion though.

My main fishing buddy has both 8 and 10 inch bits, we leave the 10 inch at home 9 times out of 10.

I've had both (gas powered) Unless 15-20 lbs fish are a constant reality I'd go 8". It's lighter to carry around and cuts with way less effort. If you have to you can drill 2 holes over lapping to get a bigger hole anyways.

8 " for me..A one guy can handle an 8"easily,leaving the buddy to clear ice out of the drilled holes..

10 inch holes are big enough for a little kid to fall through and my whole leg to down.

One you drill a hole that size, who is watching it when you leave? Will it ice over enough in a few minutes, or even overnight, to support someone's weight? What happens if snow covers the hole and insulates it from freezing solid?

Please for safety reasons,,, if you drill the big holes, do so in permanent shacks, and do not leave outside holes unattended and unmarked.

Thanks

8, for the safety factor.

I broke my leg in 3 places at Chain lakes s..I was sure happy to have 3 buddy's along & the Oilmans Hospital in Black Diamond .Layed up for 8wks,all as a result of an unmarked 10"ice drilled hole

Good advice, especially for an electric auger.

I would also go 8", especially in an electric. Your battery will last longer as the unit is cutting significantly less ice (50.24 sq inches with an 8" hole, 78.5 sq inches with a 10" hole) .

SS

There are better reasons (see above) to go for the 8" ion than those, I think.

If a kid is small enough to slip down a 10" hole in a winter coat, they're really too small to be out on the lake. I don't even know if a kid that small could even walk yet. Sucks to stick your leg down an open hole but really how often does that happen, 24 hours (less than that, most of the time) and it'll be like it was never drilled. Just part of being out there I reckon.

As the owner of a 10" Eskimo, tread gingerly

For me, when I was deciding to either buy a 8" or 10", the one thing that I remembered from borrowing friends' augers was the weight. Unless you plan on drilling only a few holes a 10" can get heavy. I'm not sure what the ion 10" weight is but anything more than 30# is a pain to drag around.

Thanks for all the input! I'm leaning more towards the 8 inch now. He is 62 years old, and handling the 10 inch by himself might take the fun out of ice fishing. Still going to kick it around, but it's looking like the 8 may be the way to go.

Thanks again

Speaking for the OLD GUYS the 10 inch can become a bit too heavy and mighty big fish have come out of 8 inch holes.

Keep it as light as possible and 8", he will appreciate it for sure.

I don’t think they meant the entire kid fell through the ice, so much as a child’s entire leg can and will fall into a 10” hole much easier then in a 8”. Two of my children while out playing on the ice a couple years ago both fell into 10” angered holes someone left behind (not at the same time, but same day/ trip). The kids were just out being kids. Not paying attention and running around. Luckily we had the truck and spare change of clothes and boots (boots for one the other had to sit while boots dried up - lol!).

That said, I’ve seen other kids fall into 8” holes as well and get soakers. Makes for a miserable day when it happens.

Personally I’d go for a 8” as well.

My 2cents.

I just bought the Ion X 10 inch. Its amazing. Nice and light. Can cut hole in hole with it. Not that thats needed but gave it a good trial run. I owned the 8 inch original Ion.... and this is much better.

I got it on sale.at the fishin hole west edm location.

My vote is also for an 8 inch auger.

Think RavYak has summed it up nicely.

I have used neither, but am thinking about getting one and checked the Ion website.

Ion X 10" weights 25 lbs.

Ion X 8" weighs 22 lbs.

That's not much of a difference. Now the number of holes you could drill on one battery charge with each, I don't know.

Had 8 and 10" gas augers for years. The 8" never got any use so I sold it. 10" hole is far easier to get fish out of, put your camera and finders down and they stay clear much better. I am over 60 and I don't find the 10" any heavier or harder to use but these aren't battery powered.

I also think the safety thing is being way over blown here. Can it happen, yes, likely, no. Watch where you put your feet and don't take tiny kids ice fishing.

I've had the 8" Ion since they first came out.
I am more than 10 years older than your father and can handle the 8" easily.
One recommendation I would make though, is to get him a sleigh to haul his equipment if he early season fishes. Also get the new Ion X the trigger system is easier to use for us geezers.

8"

As I mentioned earlier, the 10" cuts 1.56 times the ice of the 8". It stands to reason that the 8" battery would last significantly longer than the 10".

8" with no humming or hawwing less money les time to cut less weight longer battery life. I'd buy another 8" just drill two overlapping if you need a bit more room[emoji6]


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That is a good point, but I guess it depends on how many holes you intend to drill. Ion says their x model will do something like 1800 inches of ice on one charge (I assume that is for their smallest 6 inch model). So unless you were planning to do a pretty large number of holes I'm not sure it would make a difference. Might for some I guess. I'm not ambitous and energetic. LOL

So if we use 1800 inches of ice on one charge for a 6” auger (28.26 sq inches) you get 50,686 cubic inches of ice on a charge. That will get you 75 holes through 2’ of ice with a 6” auger.

Using a 8” auger (50.24 sq inches) and the number of cubic inches given above per charge you get 1008 inches of ice for the 8”. Thats 42 holes through 2’ of ice with a 8” auger.

Using a 10” auger (78.5 sq inches) and the number of cubic inches given above per charge you get 646 inches of ice for the 10”. Thats 27 holes through 2’ of ice with a 10” auger.

27 holes may be lots for an individuals fishing style, or it may not be. And the ice you fish through could be thicker or thinner. All depends on the person, the region, and style.

They say up to 1600 inches of ice and that is listed on the 8 inch auger so I would assume it is for the 8 inch bit which would be 66 holes in 24 inches of ice, 53 holes in 30 inches of ice(assuming you actually got the max rating which is unlikely).

If so for a 10 inch bit that would go down to 1000 inches although it would be even less then that because there is more then just cutting surface area at play(also the work the flutes are doing pushing the snow up and increased friction on side of hole etc) but lets say 1000 inches for simplicity sake.

In 2 ft of ice that is 41 holes. Bump that to 30 inches of ice and you are down to 33 holes. That is assuming you actually get the 1600 inch rating which is unlikely as that was probably taken on a nice warm day. In temps -20 and colder lithium ion batteries only produce around 50% of their max capacity(which is around 20 deg) so if out fishing in colder temps it is probably safe to knock the above values down another 25-50%(and goes to show why you should try to keep ion batteries warm by keeping them in heated tent or vehicle etc).

Which doesn't fall too far out of the realm of my experience with the 8 inch ion. It was the 8 inch bit but the original ion so only rated to 1000 inches. I was out at Pigeon on a fairly chilly day and the ice was around 32 inches thick. I was trying some new spots so drilling a number of holes trying to find structure and ended up only getting 18 holes before the battery died. Thankfully I had my gas auger along to finish the day off.

I think ions are great augers in the right situation but I don't consider thick ice or 10 inch holes(and definitely not a combination of the two) to be their strong point. I have read reviews that the 10 inch bit starts stalling after ice gets around 20 inches thick which wouldn't surprise me one bit as I was able to stall the 8 inch in 32 inches of ice.

As mentioned before if I lived somewhere that only got say 12 inches of ice I think the 10 inch ion would be plenty fine but once our ice gets to 20-30 inches later in the year all I got to say is good luck.

If you can afford two drills for your power head, 10 till mid January, 8 after that.

A lot of guys are going with the K Drill and a Milwaukee brushless Li-ion drill. Lighter than the Ion and you can use the drill around the house in the off season too.

The Fishin Hole had them when I was in there a month or so ago.