Strikemaster Ultra Mag 3 Blade Icing Up

[rngrfshm]

I was wondering if anyone else if having problems with there 3 blade icing up on them. I tried everything including Pam cooking spray to waxing the auger and so forth. I am waiting for strikemaster to send me a new set of blades without the serration in them and see what happens. Just checking to see if others have the same problems.

Thanks

[1775prov]

I also found that my Ultra iced heavily if I let it sit for a few minutes. Other than the icing problem I love the auger. I e-mailed Strikemaster and here was there reply:


Eric,

Thank you for your e-mail. Try using a graphite spray, cooking spray, or
the like and spray it on the lower carriage area before drilling.

Good luck catching fish!

StrikeMaster Corp



No mention of new blade in their response, and this inquiry was made on Friday 1/4. I'd be anxious to hear of any other experiences.

[Backwater Eddy]

Yes they do ice up rather badly. So far the best advice I have repeatedly heard was to make sure you run the auger at a high speed spinning the excess slush and water off the blades after each use. Then keep the blades out of the snow and in the suns rays, if the sun is out at the time. An occasional shot of WD-40 will coat the surface and resist moisture & ice adhesion.

StrikeMaster Ultra Mag's are fast, no argument about that from me.

For me I stick with Jiffy and there self centering TEFLON coat system, no icing problems, dependable, durable, plenty fast enough for me. I drill 100's of holes without a hitch time after time, just drill and fish, drill and fish & drill and fish. Any more complicated then that and I would get stumped or PO-ed, Eh.

:)

><,SUMO,>

Backwater Eddy.....><,,>

[Worm Dunker]

From the very first hole you drill for the day, hold the blade up and off the snow and ice for a few second, to let the water drain off. If you don't that snow will stick, and turn to big globs of ice... no matter what brand if auger you use. It makes a big difference for me anyway.

[rngrfshm]

Thanks for the tips.

I tried using the Pam and so forth and the can frooze on me. I was told buy the dealer I bought it at that Strikemaster is sending blades out to correct this. My dealer auger is also doing the same thing. I love the unit as well except for the freezing up of the blades. I did try spinning the unit out of the water as well, but it doesnt seem to spin fast enough to take the water all the way off. I am doing like strikemaster said and laying it down on the side with the bumps on it and still no luck. Hopefully the new blades will fix the problem.
Thanks for the replies.

[rngrfshm]

New option.

I am going to wait for the new blades, but wanted to know what to go with of the following and not worrying about icing over. The Strikemaster 2000 2ho single chipper blade or the Strikemaster Lazer Xpress 2hp 2 blade system? Which one would be better between these 2 units if the other blades dont work out from freezing over?

Thanks for the replies, not sure what to do.

[Jbob]

Like what was stated in previous post, you have to run at a high speed away from the snow and ice when you finish drilling your holes. I do this and don't have any icing problems.

[Bigred70]

I bought a Mag 2000 in the 8-1/4" size this year, and I absolutely love it. It doesnt cut as fast as the 2-blade express, but still plenty fast for me. I was not able to justify the nearly $100 price difference, just for one more blade. Actually, my friend has a new 10" Mag Express, and he also has some problems with icing. I think that the Mag 2000 is the best bang for the buck ice auger on the market.

[Rapaleye]

I was wondering if the ice is preventing you from cutting holes? I have the two blade lazer and it only ices up on occasion and when it does it still cuts with no problem. If you don't get it worked out I would highly suggest returning the auger to strikemaster and getting a two blade.
Good luck
Jim

[rngrfshm]

Hi 1775prov,

I just got my new set of blades today from Strikemaster and will see how they work if I have the same problem or not freezing. I tried everything with this 3 blade including PAM, Spinning real fast, WD40 and so forth. The Pam frooze up and spinning real fast didnt seem to work either as the unit doesnt spin that quick and wd40 only worked for about 2 holes. If this doesnt work on the blades then I am going to the 2 blade design. Strikemaster has been real good so far to work with and am very impressed with them. The temp was 10 above out with about 15mph winds and the above options do not work here. I just want to drill holes and fish not mess with the auger.

Thanks for the replies.

[rngrfshm]

One other point is that 10 above here is rather mild, most of the time it is at zero or below whereas water freezes real fast right out of the hole. I am here in ND. Nice temps out the last week though doesnt seem like January.

[rngrfshm]

Hi Rapaleye,

Yes the unit is preventing me from cutting holes. It just sits on the ice spinning. The auger is blocked or plugged. The VP of Strikemaster told me that if the blades don't work that the Mag Xpress 2 blade would be my better alternative, so that is what I will do if this doesn't work out. I got my new set of blades today from them and will try the less agressive blades to see what happens. They have been wonderful to work with and the Service department has been fantastic.

Thanks everyone for the Replies.

[Bradnd]

My 3 blade does ice up more than the 2 blade. What I have found to work the best, after drilling holes, I start another hole & drill down a couple inches or so. Just dont hit any water. It seems to help keep the ice from building up on the blades. I then lay it down off any snow, tailgate or whatever. When pulling the auger up from the last hole drilled, I also run it wide open up & down a couple times using the water to clean the fine shavings of slush off the blades.
Otherwise, it's a great auger, just hang on with both hands!

Take care,

Brad

[Tommy Skarlis]

Bradnd, that is great advice, as are a lot of the posts on this.

I had an opportunity to test the ultra before it hit the market, and did not experience any icing up problems that are not common with any other auger, especially in extremely cold weather.

The procedure that we use: Drill a hole, sweep a boot two or three times across the hole to Knock off the "crown" of shavings, and then place the auger back down into the hole and hit the throttle as you lift the auger. This flushes the hole clean of most of the slush, and the blades also.

It also helps to get in the habit of replacing the cover back over the blades when done drilling a series of holes. Not only will this keep the cover from "walking off" or blowing away, but when set towards the sun (when available), the solar gain sometimes warms the cover and prevents any remaining water or ice from freezing to the blades.

Enjoy!

Tommy Skarlis - NPAA # 11

ps. Take a kid or a senior fishing soon!

[Rickk]

To the other advice here,..I "think" you might have more luck spraying (before you leave in the AM) with spray silicone,...I think it well work much better than PAM or even WD40,....its VERY hard to wash off in factI think you have to use pretty nasty solvents to get it all off (as told to me by a car body repair man who hates silicone based polishes for that reason) I haven't tryed it on an ice hole auger but I think its the best stuff I've tried on the auger and impeller of my snowblower.

[rngrfshm]

BradND,

How fast is your ultra spinning the Auger? Mine doesn't seem to have a fast enough spin to take the water off of it. It cuts down the hole but it just piles the ice around the auger and doesnt throw the ice away from it. Last weekend I tried to spin the auger to take the water off and didnt seem to help much. Also I tried like you did and drilled down about 3 inches and it just made it worse. Last weekend it was fairly cold out and soon as I did that the water frooze on the auger. My can of PAM frooze as well. I have over 15 digital pictures of the Auger blocked by ice that I took last weekend of it. I did like you did and put the cover on and the area that it was icing up is toward the center of the auger around the middle shaving bit. With the cold temps out it would not melt. With that middle shaving bit plugged up it just spins on ice. I am waiting for our temps to drop again so I can try the auger and see if the new blades make a difference, but Mine spins slow.

Thanks everyone for the replies.

[rngrfshm]

Tommy,

What where the temperature range that you folks tested the Ultra out in? Also what was the wind speed tested in? The day that I was out it was 10 above with 15mph winds. Real mild for ND as we usually have colder temps and most of the time lots of wind. I have tried all of the above tips except for the silicon. My middle shaving point in the center of the auger around it is plugging up with ice preventing me from cutting. I will try the new blades out though and see what happens then. Thanks for responding to this.

[rngrfshm]

Hi Rickk,

What brand of Silicon spray are you using? I have a can of some and doesn't seem to stay very well. Just checking to see what brand you had that maybe is better than what I have. Thanks for responding.

[fisher]

have any of you guys thought of using RV antifreeze. you could put it in a spray bottle and use it that way. it is also non toxic so you won't be adding more crap to the water. I think it might work if you just gave your "iced up" auger a few sprays, it might melt the ice off of the auger. very interesting to see all the suggestions to an age old question. don't forget, LEAVE SOME FOR SEED!

[TJ]

Yes, silicone spray works very well. The last can I bought was STP brand, but there are several different makers. It drys on and makes the auger super slippery and water just beads off. Works great on your snowblower too. Just make sure the surface is clean before applying.

[Bradnd]

rngrfshm,

The rpm's of the strikemaster is slower than that of the jiffy. I like the slower rpm to not throw ice all over the fish house. I've only had my ultra for a couple weeks now, so am still getting to know it. Like Tommmy Skarlis stated, I also clean the hole using the auger wide open, which has kept the slush off the blades of mine. There will always be a skim of ice coating on the bit from the water freezing instantly in freezing temps, but it hasn't built up on mine that bad.

I haven't tried any silicone sprays, but it may be worth trying. I am careful not let the blades touch any snow. Start with a clean (ice-free) bit, & see if it helps any. If you already have ice frozen on it, you will need to melt it off good.

I may check with Reeds, where I ordered mine, & see if this is a common problem. I would think Strikemaster would come out with a set of de-icer blades for these bits.

Keep me informed,


Brad

[fishinnut]

This thread is a great advertisement for Jiffy. Sure glad I bought one now.

[Rapaleye]

That is kind of a silly comment. Strikemaster makes a great auger in the Lazer 2 blade. I have owned both Jiffy and Lazer and head to head I would buy the Lazer again. Jiffy also makes a fine auger and both brands cut holes just fine.
The mistake in this case is it looks like Strikemaster tried to roll out a new product without sufficient testing, a marketing mistake like that doesn't make the whole company bad. In fact in this case it sounds like they are standing behing their product with good customer service. I will never fault a company for trying to innovate.
Lets not start the bashing.
Jim

[rngrfshm]

I agree with you Rapaleye 100 percent. Strikemaster has been behind there product 100 percent and I have no problems with there advise at all. I still haven't tried the new blades out yet, but I was told that the testing they did was with the smooth blades and not the serrated ones which is what is one them and happening, maybe Tommy S. would know for sure. Again strikemaster has been fantastic to work with and the service department is great. I asked for a new set of blades, and they had sent me 2 complete sets of them. I have no complaints on there products only positive.

Thanks Again for everyones comments on this.