Four years of owning the ION 19150 Ice Auger
I picked up the ION 19150 Auger several years ago. After I started using it I wrote a full review of the 19150. In that I said I had “yet to kill the battery.” Well, that is no longer true. Whether as a result of user error or simply “old age,” the original battery from my ION 19150 has become inoperable. But other than that it is still going strong. Especially after I picked up some new and improved power sources for the thing.
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We had a heck of a cold snap here in November. After the third day of below freezing weather I decided I better break out all the ice fishing gear to make sure everything was still in working order. First I fired up my Marcum flasher. It was not only working but still fully charged! Next up was the ION Auger. I popper the battery on and gave the trigger a squeeze. Nothing.
Okay. Next I got out the charger and slid the battery onto it. Uh oh. Red flashing light. That means “too hot.” But in this case it meant dead battery. I tried to charge the thing anyway, but it was to no avail. It wouldn’t hold a charge or do anything. So I went over to the ION website to buy a replacement. Well, they ain’t cheap. And unfortunately for me, most weren’t even available.
The only battery I could find in stock for my first generation auger was a 5Ah battery for $220. Now that did come with free shipping, but it’s still a lot of money. It’s just shy of half of what I paid for the auger! I know that lithium batteries cost a lot. Heck, what doesn’t these days? Plus I have to consider all the money I saved by not using gas over the last 4 years. This battery has increased capacity and it should last me several seasons. So I think that it was more than worth the price.
I wanted to make sure that I wouldn’t run into this problem again. Or more importantly that I wouldn’t end up looking for a battery in the middle of ice fishing season. Because if they are sold out now I can only imagine what it will be like in January and February. So I turned to Amazon where I found a 3Ah ION battery that fit my auger for a lot less money. Of course it didn’t have as much juice as the battery I picked up directly from ION. But it should work good as a spare. Besides, it’s no smaller than the original battery that came with my auger. And that thing drilled thousands of holes.
Looking back I am glad I picked up the ION Auger. At the time it was a lot of money and I wasn’t sure if I should take the plunge. But in hindsight it is easy to see that it was a good choice. I was more mobile and active with the lighter drill. I punched more holes and that helped me to catch more fish.
Things move a lot faster than they used to. I had the same hand auger for probably 20 years. And I still see some people on the ice with the same one. But you look at things like technology and they seem to change over night. The same goes here. Even though it was sparkling new to me just a few years ago, I don’t even see the ION 19150 on sale anywhere. These days ION seems to be pushing the new and improved ION 39300 model instead.
My ION 19150 is still working like a charm. It’s probably the best ice fishing purchase I have ever made. I would buy it again in a heart beat. And I would recommend that anyone else who likes ice fishing do the same. Forget about hand augers and gas augers. Lithium ion powered augers are lighter, quieter, and more easy to use. There are no downsides to them at all. If you have a chance to get an ION auger, pick one up! Just don’t forget to take care of the batteries. Or at least by a spare before the season kicks into gear.
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I just bought my first electric auger because it is lighter than my gas auger. I am 70 with a bad back & the electric keeps me in the game. But I will not back my gas augers. My original Jiffy my wife bought me for Christmas around 1986. That auger drilled hundreds of holes a year for me over 19 years of service. The few liters of gas it burned a year isn’t even worth mentioning. My auger sat out in the cold with gas in it, sometimes buried in snow in the back of my truck. That auger never let me down until the day it died, halfway through a hole. When I pumped the primer gas ran out of the cylinder, the rings were totally shot. I bought another Jiffy right after that & it is still running today along with my Rapalla. I will be selling off my gas augers & they will help pay for my new one. My Ion gen 3 will last me longer than I have left. So many memories were started with those augers.
Thanks Bryan. The gas augers were definitely better than hand drilling! I think the new battery powered augers are best of all. Gas augers will probably be a thing of the past soon. But we still have the memories.