I purchased this beauty a couple of weeks ago along with an 8" auger (sold separately) and finally got to use it today. I bought it mainly to plant various tree seedlings on my 10 acres. My wife's uncle has one and I was borrowing it all the time, so I figured it was time to buy my own. It started right up every time and had no problem with soft or moist soils. It takes longer in the clay soil material, which I have a lot of. Drill for a little bit, pull it up to empty the auger, then drill some more. Good workout though, you'll feel it the next day for sure! I also purchased the 18" extension for those times I'll be digging deep to get below the frost line for fence posts. I'm too old to be digging by hand anymore, so the power auger was a great addition to my power tool collection.

I bought 1 of these a while back and it worked great for the first two holes, or until the machine got hot. After that it was extremely hard to start but after restarting it would only run if you had the choke pulled half way shut. After twelve holes the machine wouldn't run at all ,So... I called Tractor Supply and asked if I could return it for a replacement. Had no trouble with the staff... very co-operative and hospitable. Now I have the second machine and it also is not working properly, it has no power , it will not take gas unless the choke is half way closed, it stalls completely if there is any root or any but of rock at all, it's just not a dependable machine. It probably would work great digging holes in the sand on a beach somewhere . other than that I would not own another one nor recommend it to anyone else unless they are in need of a good boat anchor. The Tractor Supply persons I have dealt with are very friendly and I would certainly recommend the store to anyone but not this product.