Multimeters - What Features To Look For.

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by socaldmax

Yup, the vendor selling the "MS2108" for $39.95 left the "A" off the end. Maybe accidental, but I'm guessing it wasn't.

I did buy an MS2108 on Ebay for $61. It will take another week for it to arrive.

I think you are correct.

I went ahead and ordered the one from Amazon.

85.00

Oh well. I am sure I will be happy in the end.

Thanks everybody.

[pbiJim]

I've owned a lot of meters over the years. Some were NBS traceable. Some were cheap ones. Most were somewhere in-between.

For the most part, the cheap ones are plenty good for average daily use. There are a few things that you need to watch for when buying a meter to use with 12vdc systems.

One thing to watch is the resolution. The last $8 meter that I bought from Harbor Freight only reads down to 1 digit below the decimal point & that last digit is not trustworthy. I can not use that meter to accurately check the voltage on a 12v battery bank.

Another thing to watch is max voltage. Some of the smaller meters that I have seen recently do not go up very high on the ac voltage scale.

If you are buying a clamp-on ammeter, you need to check if it is ac only or ac/dc. The cheap ones are usually ac only.

[pbiJim]

Originally Posted by SURV69

BTW... if anyone knows how to actually calibrate these things accurately, I'd like to know....

To do it officially & be NBS traceable, you need a device called a calibration standard to test the accuracy of the meter. They are not cheap & are not commonly available at retail outlets.

Once you determine that the meter needs to be adjusted, you then hope that it's adjustable. Most are, but some are not. Adjusting them is often as simple as turning a screw inside the unit. The adjustment method varies with the individual instrument.

[pbiJim]

Originally Posted by cadmus

I assume, like everything these days, they are all make by the same small children in the same asian sweatshop.

The last time that I spoke with a district rep, Simpson meters were still being assembled by native Americans. That was more than 10 years ago.

[pbiJim]

Originally Posted by foggysail

You can trust that he is not putting 800 amperes through any hand held meter!

I just took a look at one of my clap-on meters. It has a 1000 amp range. I bought it off the shelf at Fry's Electronics. It's nothing special.

[pbiJim]

Originally Posted by goboatingnow

Nobody measures current , in a test environment with shunts !!!

I've made many thousands of NBS-traceable precision measurements in laboratory environments using temperature compensated shunts. They work. Some people do still use them.

[goboatingnow]

I've made many thousands of NBS-traceable precision measurements in laboratory environments using temperature compensated shunts. They work. Some people do still use them

Yes yes of course, when I meant 'test' I meant a field 'test' environment. hall effect clamps are almost universally used as breaking into the circuit is sometimes a big pain.

Dave

[Therapy]

Well hell!

I got the MS2108 today and the leads are loose in the meter sockets. They don't push in. They just "fall" in and wobble around. Spreading the posts a little did nothing.

Oh well. Will return and hope for a good better one.

[Tymadman]

The difference in price also relates to the (safety) category rating, not just accuracy. A cat III rated multimeter will (generally) cost more than a cat II rated one.
A DIY handyman would only need a cat II rated multimeter (for testing mains voltage) or cat I (for testing non-mains stuff) whereas some industrial sites require electricians / technicians to use cat III minimum.

[s/v Jedi]

Cheap, cheap, cheap often equals junk. My Fluke is an antique and I have saved a ton by buying it so long ago that I can't remember and not ever having to buy one again. Sometimes, spending a little more for quality gear pays off

[Cheechako]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Well hell!

I got the MS2108 today and the leads are loose in the meter sockets. They don't push in. They just "fall" in and wobble around. Spreading the posts a little did nothing.

Oh well. Will return and hope for a good better one.

Well.... I tried to say it earlier....based on working on electronics stuff as a hobby... you get what you pay for. R U gonna use this tool for a long time? FLuke! or other good brand. How many $20 units are you willing to buy before you get a good one.... seems like it always comes down to that with cheap stuff... lord knows I've tried it my share of times!

[Lake-Effect]

Originally Posted by Cheechako

How many $20 units are you willing to buy before you get a good one....

One of my favourite $60 off-brand multimeters regularly comes up on sale for around $20 [oh heck, regular price is now $50]

It's my experience that the $40 to $100 price-point seems to give you a reasonably built meter that will last. I have one Radio-Shack meter that is a near-clone of the Fluke 77 (rubber boot, full auto-ranging, analog bar-graph, beep continuity). It cost $99, came on sale for around $70. It's going on 20 years old but still works well.

[socaldmax]

Originally Posted by Therapy

Well hell!

I got the MS2108 today and the leads are loose in the meter sockets. They don't push in. They just "fall" in and wobble around. Spreading the posts a little did nothing.

Oh well. Will return and hope for a good better one.

Don't mail it back yet!!

I just received mine in the mail. Are you positive the leads don't fit? It might be that you didn't push them in far enough. Mine go in 1/2" before making contact, they go in another 1/4" whereupon they make positive contact and the leads are flush against the surface of the meter. It takes firm pressure to make them seat.

[s/v Jedi]

Originally Posted by socaldmax

Don't mail it back yet!!

I just received mine in the mail. Are you positive the leads don't fit? It might be that you didn't push them in far enough. Mine go in 1/2" before making contact, they go in another 1/4" whereupon they make positive contact and the leads are flush against the surface of the meter. It takes firm pressure to make them seat.

you can always whack it with a mallet a bit to make it fit
(yep, making fun )

[Therapy]

Originally Posted by socaldmax

Don't mail it back yet!!

I just received mine in the mail. Are you positive the leads don't fit? It might be that you didn't push them in far enough. Mine go in 1/2" before making contact, they go in another 1/4" whereupon they make positive contact and the leads are flush against the surface of the meter. It takes firm pressure to make them seat.

OOPS.

I did not push them in that hard. Another set of leads I have fit in only OK. Not tight but OK.