The hand auger is the most basic of the mechanical drills and is driven from the surface by a series of extensions that are added as drilling proceeds into the ice. The drill, like all other coring drills, has to be retrieved each time a core section is recovered. IDDO has in inventory several types of hand augers: SIPRE (3-inch core), PICO (3 and 4-inch), and Kovacs (5-inch). In addition, IDDO has constructed two prototypes of a 3-inch hand auger for testing. The 3-inch models take cores 1 m long, the 4-inch auger can be configured to take either one-meter or half-meter cores, and the 5-inch auger takes a half-meter core. The maximum depth to which hand augers without power assistance (see Sidewinder) can be used is approximately 20 meters.
Hand augers are typically operated by the investigator without assistance from IDDO drillers.
PICO Auger
The PICO auger is made of fiberglass composite pipe with aluminum fittings and is consequently much lighter than the SIPRE auger. The cutting head incorporates both a taper and core dogs. The extensions are held together using aluminum pins, which allows for rapid assembly and disassembly, much like the SIPRE auger. The lighter weight of the PICO auger, compared to the SIPRE auger, makes deeper penetration without a lifting device possible.
PICO augers come in two different diameters: 3-inch and 4-inch. The 3-inch model takes cores 1 m long; the 4-inch auger can be configured to take either one-meter or half-meter long cores. The maximum depth to which these augers without power assistance can be used is approximately 20 meters. As an option, however, the PICO augers can be used with the “Sidewinder”. The Sidewinder applies power to the auger to increase the rate of drilling and to make it possible for a single operator to drill to depths difficult for hand coring systems.
| Type: | Coring |
| Number in Inventory: | Seven 3-inch augers Two 4-inch augers |
| Max. Practical Depth: | About 20 meters; 30+ meters with Sidewinder |
| Core Diameter: | 3-inch or 4-inch |
| Weight: | 100 lbs for 20m kit |
Hand Augers, PICO Operator Manual
Hand Augers, Sidewinder Operator Manual
SIPRE Auger
The SIPRE auger is made from stainless steel and is consequently heavy. However, this weight helps its penetration. Quick-release pins hold the extensions together for rapid assembly and disassembly. A simple taper on the inside of the SIPRE core head uses the wedging effect of chips inside the core barrel to break and hold the core. This is effective in firn and brittle ice, but not in tough ice or wet ice. Narrow and wide kerf versions of the SIPRE auger are available.
| Type: | Coring |
| Number in Inventory: | 4 narrow kerf kits 2 wide kerf kits |
| Max. Practical Depth: | About 20 meters |
| Core Diameter: | 3-inch |
| Weight: | 85 lbs for 6m kit |
Hand Augers, SIPRE Operator Manual
The Kovacs auger (engineered by Kovacs Enterprises, Inc) is basically an upgraded version of the SIPRE auger. The core barrel is a lightweight filament-wound composite tube about 1.15 m long with plastic flights. The cutting head is aluminum and the cutting teeth are steel, as are the core dogs. The drive head is stainless steel and aluminum and allows for fast coupling and uncoupling from the core barrel.
| Type: | Coring |
| Number in Inventory: | One 14cm core kit |
| Max. Depth: | 9 meters (based on number of extensions currently in IDDO inventory) |
| Core Diameter: | 5-inch (127 mm) |
| Weight: | 80 lbs for 9m kit |
