hand auger

[FishermanTim]

Before you throw in the towel (figuratively) check the blades.
Check to see if they are dull which could be a possibility.
Also check to see if the blades are seated tightly, since even a little looseness could change the pitch of the blades making them not cut.

I picked up a cheap 6" Bass pro model, and when I put it together at home (I wanted to see what it looked and felt like) I noticed that the screws on one blade were not fully tightened. I would not have been prepared to fix that out on the ice without a lot of cursing and fuming!


Hope the issue can be solved at home and you won't have to shell out $$ for another auger.