What Multimeter to buy

[studley67]

my 20 yr old micronta is still going strong

[MartyJ]

you could buy 10 cheapies for that coinage

Yes Damien you are correct.

Well they normally go for $245 and that is what I paid for mine.

Gosh how silly am I for buying a good quality product..

[Strangeways]

Fluke multimeters are without peer. My last Fluke lasted 17 years, and I would still own it if I didn't accidentally step on it. It cost around $200 back then - what's that $11 per year ? I bought a Jaycar "copy" and it goes through a battery a month and itr already stuffed after 2 years.

I will be saving up for a Fluke, and I have no problem spending $250 - $400, because I know it will still be working when I give it to my son in 20 years time (unless I step on it of course).

you can take some shortcuts on tools, but not on a multimeter or soldering station.

[///]

Fluke multimeters are without peer.

That is true now that both Fluke and Tektronix are owned by Danaher.
Many of the Fluke meters were rebranded Tektronix gear. The Tek TX1 and TX3's became Fluke 183 and 185's
The fluke 8x series were based on the Tek 9xx DMM that I have.
Tektronix are still around, but only as Lab equipment, no field gear anymore.
Not sure about today, but 10-15 years ago all Fluke's lab gear was rebadged Philips gear, they couldn't hold a candle to the Tek and HP scopes and  analysers.

[deep six]

Hi Marty

Yes mate I won it, good buying too since I was considering a Chinese fluke meter at about the same money. Just waiting for it to appear in my letter box.
Oh and a big thanks for the tip on the listing too mate!!

Cheers

[studley67]

does it measure your plunger with its restictor

[MartyJ]

Hi Marty

Yes mate I won it, good buying too since I was considering a Chinese fluke meter at about the same money. Just waiting for it to appear in my letter box.
Oh and a big thanks for the tip on the listing too mate!!

Cheers

Good work hopefully you'll love it.  The lead kit I linked earlier is well worth a look to.  Considering how cheap you got your DMM for its worth buying even more!

[Strangeways]

Just following up on this thread - I followed some advice Mike (Homepin) and MartyJ gave me on Fluke multimeters. I owned a Fluke for 17 years, and it died after I crushed it. I tried the Jaycar meters, and they don't cut it.

I ended up buying a Fluke from China - the very well priced Fluke 15B for AUS$78 with free shipping. I received it yesterday, and it is the genuine article. Manual is in English and Chinese. The quality is what you would expect.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/FLUKE-15B-F15B-F-Auto-Range-Digital-Multimeter-Meter-/320990306975?pt=AU_B_I_Electrical_Test_Equipment&hash=item4abc83629f

I'm just passing this one for others - This IS the genuine article, and you simply cannot go wrong at this price 

[Retropin]

Bloody hell thats a good price... you have to be prepared to spend a minimum of $50 at Jaycar before you start getting anything 1/2 decent... even then i had to make up some new leads as the wire fell off the probe due to dodgy soldering

[Homepin]

Glad you like it Nino. They certainly are the real deal - just made to meet the China market, that's why it clearly states on the box and the manual "not for sale outside China" - Fluke want to keep it a secret and keep the price 'in the west' as high as they can.

The only gripe I have with the 15B is that on auto-range resistance they are slightly slow locking on (finding the correct range) - that's probably just me being spoilt using high end meters though  .

For the money you would be nuts to buy anything else really.

[studley67]

wow that looks great.I may have to treat myself.

[Marty Machine]

"You get what you pay for"

Stick at the higher end for best results, and keep well away from those small pocket-size yellow meters from Jaycar & Altronics, while they're only $10-$15ea, they don't have a very high input resistance, so when measuring voltages (especially lower voltages) the meter tends to load DOWN the voltage to give an inaccurate reading.

Even if you monitor say +5v on a nice fluke, then ALSO add the small yellow cheapy onto the same pin, you'll see the fluke meter suddenly drop to 4.5 to 4.8v ......so, KEEP AWAY from tiny yellow meters !

MM

[Strangeways]

Glad you like it Nino. They certainly are the real deal - just made to meet the China market, that's why it clearly states on the box and the manual "not for sale outside China" - Fluke want to keep it a secret and keep the price 'in the west' as high as they can.

The only gripe I have with the 15B is that on auto-range resistance they are slightly slow locking on (finding the correct range) - that's probably just me being spoilt using high end meters though  .

For the money you would be nuts to buy anything else really.

Absolutely Mike. Very happy with the product, and for the price, I think it is a "must have" !

[MartyJ]

Did you get the additional lead kit as well Nino?