Auger Etiquette

[MDH]

Would it be out of line to use a gas auger out on St. Clair tomorrow? I am headed out there tomorrow, and I really want to try my new (used) gas auger. If a lot of you think it's a bit much with this small bit of ice please let me know so I am not out of line. I can just use my 6 inch lazer if need be.

Thanks!

MDH

[icefishermanmark]

I would say it's a bit much. Not because people will care, but because it's a lot of weight to drag around, and by the time the thing fires up you could have drilled a few holes with the lazer. Some guys may get upset, but just don't get too close.

[Ice T]

If your out for only pan fish then the answer is Yes! It's like squirrel hunting with a .30-06. That 6 inch Lazer cuts like butter. On the other hand, if you need a pike hole, I'll cut ya some slack. Have at it! :cool:

[I'llbeoutside]

You will get a few dirty looks!! It's a lot of extra weight to haul just to check it out. We were using 7" & 8" augers today w/ 4-6" ice and it was nothing.

[Frantz]

It's your ice as well as theirs, cut em the way you want, just keep a practical distance away.

[jackpine savage]

I dont get it, why would anyone care how you made a hole in the ice to fish?
whay kinda snobs are out there?
I'll use a dam chain saw if I see fit!

[slowpoke]

Like Ice T said ;"It's like squirrel hunting with a .30-06." beside it would not be much of a test.

[MDH]

I'm going with the lazer till we get some more ice. Maybe I'll head out to Kent or Walled lake this week to try out the auger. Good luck !

MDH

[multibeard]

I dont get it, why would anyone care how you made a hole in the ice to fish?
whay kinda snobs are out there?
I'll use a dam chain saw if I see fit!

It will make the natives restless when you come out at prime walleye/speck fishing time on your quad with your power augar. Nothing will shut down the bite faster than the racket of a power augar even in 15 foot of water.

[slowpoke]

It will make the natives restless when you come out at prime walleye/speck fishing time on your quad with your power augar. Nothing will shut down the bite faster than the racket of a power augar even in 15 foot of water.

I'll still say it's more annoying to the fisherman then the fish. I myself used my lazer until the ice gets thick, say over 8", even then if I'm not planning on moving much I don't take the power auger. If I'm walleye fishing I like the 10" hole my power auger makes over my 6" hand auger. I don't know how many times I have drill with my power auger + rev it up a little to clean out the ice shaving, dropped down my offering and wham, fish on. Sometimes I think the fish comes to the noise, but I think not. If you want to try it around me go head. Heck, if it does scare the fish it might scare them to me.

[muddman55]

my daughters got the OLD? man :) an auger for Christmas so I know how you feel, can't wait to use the new toy. I'm waiting for 8-10" but thats me do what makes you feel good and f 'em if they don't like it.

[bassman00]

Do what you want to do. I am so sick of hearing other people crying all the time about little stuff. It s your auger do what you want with it.

[zx10r2004]

quote=bassman00;1973860]Do what you want to do. I am so sick of hearing other people crying all the time about little stuff. It s your auger do what you want with it.[/quote]:yeahthat:

[sfw1960]

If your out for only pan fish then the answer is Yes! It's like squirrel hunting with a .30-06. That 6 inch Lazer cuts like butter. On the other hand, if you need a pike hole, I'll cut ya some slack. Have at it! :cool:

It's your ice as well as theirs, cut em the way you want, just keep a practical distance away.

Like Ice T said ;"It's like squirrel hunting with a .30-06." beside it would not be much of a test.

I dont get it, why would anyone care how you made a hole in the ice to fish?
whay kinda snobs are out there?
I'll use a dam chain saw if I see fit!

my daughters got the OLD? man :) an auger for Christmas so I know how you feel, can't wait to use the new toy. I'm waiting for 8-10" but thats me do what makes you feel good and f 'em if they don't like it.

Do what you want to do. I am so sick of hearing other people crying all the time about little stuff. It s your auger do what you want with it.
:yeahthat:

BOY!! You sure can tell which guys don't have a power auger!!
:lol: :lol: :lol:

Mine's TEN yrs. old and I'll use it where I damn well please... I've had bad rotator cuffs for more than a few years so I traded my lazer for a reg. blue mora , cuz they bite too hard for my shoulders' liking.
Don't drill 15' from someone and carve all your holes at once well before prime-time.
AND joke 'em if they can't take a **** !!
:evilsmile

R

[flyrod4steelhead]

As for as other anglers are concerend, use your gas auger when ever you please. You put the green down for the auger, gas and oil, use it however you see fit. You are out there to fish just like everyone else is. If they don't like it, and give you dirty look's, just wave and keep on a drilling :D

[woodie slayer]

I'm going with the lazer till we get some more ice. Maybe I'll head out to Kent or Walled lake this week to try out the auger. Good luck !

MDH



ah ya big chicken.if you want to see how it cuts you shouldn't have to wait
last time i checked it was still a free country.

[wally-eye]

Since I don't have an auger I just take my 12 gauge out with me and blast a nice hole in the ice. It usually takes about 3 or 4 rounds of buckshot but does a fairly nice job. Kind of noisy. Don't like the noise? Move then...

[bigsid]

I have an 8" Lazer. If I fart too loud while cutting holes, would that be out of line?:gaga:

[marty]

Since I don't have an auger I just take my 12 gauge out with me and blast a nice hole in the ice. It usually takes about 3 or 4 rounds of buckshot but does a fairly nice job..

Buckshot buckshot buckshot. Do you have a clue how many fish I've clean with buckshot in the meat:yikes: Real men use slugs anyway:lol:

[Oldgrandman]

It will make the natives restless when you come out at prime walleye/speck fishing time on your quad with your power augar. [B]Nothing will shut down the bite faster than the racket of a power augar even in 15 foot of water.

Not necessarily. My buddy caught one (walleye) as soon as he dropped in his frst line while I was still drilling holes 10-15 feet away once. This fish won the walleye prize in a tourney BTW. Had this happen with pike too.
I suppose at times it could bother the fish but it does not all the time, so it has been my observation anyways.

[JasonCarp]

Hiliarious thread, I can't believe people actually think the bite will shut down by using a power auger. That's like saying if you aren't using a sailboat to troll for salmon, you'll scare the fish off.

If you want to hunt for squirrels with a 30.06 go ahead, it doesn't kill them any MORE, than a 20 guage. In fact, i've shot a squirrel with a 30.06 and you have to be a BETTER shot than with the ole scatter gun.

If you get dirty looks from ANYONE using your power auger, move closer to them and drill more holes. Preferrable in a tight circle around them, with about 1 inch of ice between the holes.

[melnik]

The motor's on the fisherman's side of the ice. I can't believe a hand auger is any more quite on the fish's side of the ice, and if so, it's only marginally quieter. Maybe since the power auger cuts quicker it's even less of a bother for the fish. Hmmmm???

[MDH]

Didn't expect to cause such an uproar :lol:. I honestly beleive that gas auger, as long as you are not right on top of someone, is fine. The reason I didn't use it today, is because I realized how thin the ice is right now. I was thinking it might closer to 8 inches, but it was only about 4-5 most of the time today. To each his own, within reason. I appreciate all of the responses. I honestly don't mind the auger sound. The thing I really hate are the snowmobilers that'll fly by your shanty. Hope you all had a good day out on the lake!

MDH

[ahasiec]

It's your auger and use it as you see fit, but at least have some courtesy and drill your holes a little away from other shanty's....we were out today and had a guy roll up next to us, about 15ft away and start drilling holes....I think he must of drilled 20 of them....some guys were upset...but hey...it was his right to do what he pleases...

[Gutz]

I read this post yesterday so today when I was out on the ice and marking fish I had my buddy gas auger a hole 10-15 feet from me. It wasn't a great experiment because the fish seemed really negative to me today. I was throwing everything I had at them, getting a few to come off the bottom but very few takers. Anyway, I was marking a bunch and watching them on the Vex when he started drilling and they disappeared. I never thought it would matter. In 20 fow, btw. They came right back in less than a minute though and I think if they are that spooky, you probably didn't have a good shot at them anyways. I say drill away if you want but keep a little distance that you would with whatever auger you are using.

[ih772]

This really isn't that hard to figure out. Take it out and play with it if you want but be respectful to others around you. Put yourself in the others persons place and think how they would feel, then decide how far away and how many holes you want to drill.

[MDH]

As I said earlier, just trying to get people's feel for it. I also decided to take the lazer out since the ice was quite thin. Perhaps I'll take it out next weekend. Glad I didn't take the gas auger as I think it would have been a bit much. So I think I did figure it out. I do value most people's opinions on this site so that is why I asked. Thanks again for all of the responses!

MDH

[stickem]

i have a gas'r n i use it in 4-5 inches....i paid enough for it ima use it!!!!

[TrekJeff]

If I had the option of a power auger, I'd defiantly use it. If the ice is reletivly thin...less than 4" I don't think I would, just because of the chance of it blasting through quickly...it may not be an issue, I've never used one, but making a decision based on scaring fish, annoying others..not an issue. Plus the guy that would be bitchin would soon change his mind when the ice was over a foot thick and you offered to drill him one rather than having him twist one through....that reminds me, I still need to sharpen my blades...hahahaha

[DonP]

Well...

I would just go for it.... but don't put any signs on your back that read....

.50 a hole
5 for $2

:yikes:

Sorry John... just had to!! :D :lol:

[Michigan Mike]

I agree it's not much of a test yet and extra weight to carry around.

But it's nice to have sometimes just to blast 20 or 30 holes real quick
over a couple hundred yards to be able to cover some new water and locate fish.

The same people that are whining will be happy to fish all the "Free Holes"
as soon as you leave.
I fished an area yesterday that had quite a few "Vexaholic"folks fishing on saturday and I took advantage of all the "Free Holes" and never had to drill any and took a few nice ones home too.:fish:

[sea nympho]

If they don't like your gas auger, bust out a SPUD!!!:evilsmile

[RichP]

If they don't like your gas auger, bust out a SPUD!!!:evilsmile

:lol:

[William H Bonney]

I had a gas auger for a number of years,,, that was the only auger I had,, that and a spud. I only had one guy bitch about it,, he was in a spearing shanty( I didn't know he was in there) with fish coming in the hole. I used to kick and scream about the auger spooking the fish,,,,, I really think it's a non-issue now...........

[snowman11]

I always thought power augers were over rated til I started fishing with my x67c.

Now I wish I had one.

[sfw1960]

If they don't like your gas auger, bust out a SPUD!!!:evilsmile
Do anything on the secret lake Brand0??
I always thought power augers were over rated til I started fishing with my x67c.

Now I wish I had one.

:lol: :lol: :lol:
I know that's right!!
:fish2:

[TVCJohn]

Might as well stir the pot too.....

Don't mind power augers, however never did care too much for spud heads banging right next to me. Made me want to go piss in their hole when they weren't looking!:lol: Of course I was always worried about the fractured ice around their hole so I'd have to be a distance shooter and a straight shot.:lol::lol:

[busybeaver]

Something that kind of annoyed me this weekend. We were sitting in a small channel 2-4 ft deep at the deepest point. There were permanents and portables all around. We had two shappels end to end sitting on 6-8 in of ice. This guy spuds his way up the channel all the way to our shanties, asks if we are catching anything and then spuds his way off. I laughed about it, but it was kinda annoying. I used my gas auger on 4 in last weekend. Thought the ice was gonna be thicker so I left the lazer at home. I felt like an idiot firing that thing up.

[shadow]

i have this issue with my elbow and shoulder feeling like they are being excruciatingly painfully torn off my body when i use them in certain movements and manual augering being one of them so if i happen to be using the gas auger on 4 inches of ice and you have a problem with it than you can come and open up a couple holes for me.....

see you on the ice

[Diesel-Guy]

:rant:amazing!!!!!!!!!!! i have both,if i'm just taking a bucket and rod i will take the hand auger. but if i'm dragging my shanty with me the gas auger is going. even if the the ice is only 4 inches.it my right to use whatever the hell i want.yah i don't go 10 feet away from someone,maybe 20 feet:lol:. I guess some people really do have to much time on their hands,and feel the need to bitch about anything.get over it and fish on!!!!!!!!!!!!!!:fish:

[jawbreaker]

I suggest a gas torch........when your done with your hole you could use it to warm up some sticky buns!!!!:idea:

[Frantz]

Well...

I would just go for it.... but don't put any signs on your back that read....



:yikes:

Sorry John... just had to!! :D :lol:

Ban him, he said a hole!!:lol:

[MAttt]

The only Proper auger etiquette I know of is to make sure you always drill your hoes from left to right.
You should always stay least 25 yards away from others without asking unless they have a mess of nice sized fish flopping all over the place in plain view. This is an open invitation that they would like you to fish as close
as possible to them, so no need to ask, but remember always proper etiquette and to drill them from left to right.
:)

[wally-eye]

The only Proper auger etiquette I know of is to make sure you always drill your hoes from left to right.
You should always stay least 25 yards away from others without asking unless they have a mess of nice sized fish flopping all over the place in plain view. This is an open invitation that they would like you to fish as close
as possible to them, so no need to ask, but remember always proper etiquette and to drill them from left to right.
:)


Left to right but from who's view?????? I'm real confused now which isn't hard to do.............close, not to close, left to right, man too many rules..:dizzy:

I'll still use my 12 gauge and 000 buckshot........nice hole and usually only needs 2 or 3 shots.........

[RichP]

make sure you always drill your hoes from left to right.

So it's never ok to drill your hoes from behind?

[Captain Gadget]

This topic (Auger / Ice-Fishing Etiquette) has been WIDELY discussed in past years.
In fact there was an Official Poll taken about it by the Michigan-Sportsman.com Webmaster last year.

Click this link to see what people had to say in the survey back then, plus see a graphic bar chart showing how people responded and feel :smile-mad when someone cuts holes either nearby / too close / what ever.

How far apart ?, Fishing holes ! http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/forum/showthread.php?t=59574


Ih772 said it BEST; see his response in post #26 below
http://www.michigan-sportsman.com/forum/showpost.php?p=1974494&postcount=26