Auger problem
 

Have a strike master laser 10" gas auger. Had blades sharpened and now have to push down fairly hard to get the auger to cut. Confident blades were sharpened properly, and i am being told the power point could be the problem? I can't believe the point alone would be causing the problem.

Has anyone else experienced this problem?

What makes you "confident" they were sharpened properly? And are they installed properly? Odds are it's one or the other.

have had same person sharpen before and would cut like butter, now complete opposite, blades have no burs or signs of damage, i'm at a loss right now.

I realize you trust the person who sharpens the blades, but the fact is I've seen this same thing happen. I've owned the Lazer auger since my 1st in 1997. Sometimes the sharpener didn't get the right blade pitch.


I would buy brand new blades. It's good to have a spare set anyways.

If the new blades don't work the head on the Lazer is out of pitch. I've had that happen too. Re-drilling holes with a Lazer does wonders to them and too much down pressure or slamming the head of the auger onto the ice will ruin the proper pitch.

Chuck's right. If you removed the blades, had them sharpened, and it cuts worse than before, it has to be the blades or the mounting of the blades.

Maybe you can compare them to a buddy's. It don't take much to make them not cut well.

Quite often the flutes the blades bolt to can bend and mess up the blade angle to the point it won't cut. I had an auger "trued" at a Place called D-Rock on the north side of Mpls. They had a jig they used to correct the angle of the flute.

While sharp main blades are critical, don't over look the "point" blade. I spent the early part of my career working for the the Government (in Canada) measuring water. We performed many ice cover measurements each day that consisted of 20+ holes each in river ice, rocks were pounded at the edges and blades constantly being changed. When you are drilling that many holes a day (up to 100) in thick ice a well functioning auger is a must. The custom Stihl augers we had were awesome and I didn't believe that the point made much of a difference until a 20 vet told be to swap out the point.

The effect was immediate and I have not drilled with a dull or damaged point since. i took my own point out over the weekend and sharpened it, my Eskimo auger was instantly drilling like a champ again.

Point blade
 

Thank you Mark,
I never considered putting an edge to the point.

No problem, I'm still amazed it makes that much of a difference

SM blades are almost impossible to sharpen correctly.