Looking For Usable Multimeter - Cheap

P

(PeteCresswell)

Guest
I've got a Micronta that's getting weird on me. Thing must be
30 years old, but it always did what little I needed of it:

- Checking automobile battery voltages

- Checking various other batteries' voltages

- Looking for shorts


Can anybody recommend a replacement that doesn't cost an arm and
a leg?

I'm thinking hardware-store quality is going tb adequate, but
don't know the ins and outs.
--
PeteCresswell
 
Harbor Freight has a digital meter for $3 -- but I don't know how sturdy it
is.
 
On Mon, 21 Feb 2011 14:16:53 -0500, "(PeteCresswell)" <x@y.Invalid>
wrote:

I've got a Micronta that's getting weird on me. Thing must be
30 years old, but it always did what little I needed of it:

- Checking automobile battery voltages

- Checking various other batteries' voltages

- Looking for shorts


Can anybody recommend a replacement that doesn't cost an arm and
a leg?

I'm thinking hardware-store quality is going tb adequate, but
don't know the ins and outs.
Click to expand...
The little US$27 (at Lowes) Extech model DM110 is a nice "tool bag"
meter. Small, handles the basic functions, includes a case. Downside is
no backlight and the leads are permanently attached.

In general: Autoranging is nice but increases the time between probing
something and getting a stable reading. Autoranging plus a "range hold"
function is a nice compromise. Having a continuity beeper is handy for
checking for shorts/opens without having to keep looking back at the
meter. Backlighted displays are nice. Don't get too wrapped up in
"counts"; the world is mostly three significant figures, so 0-1999 is
okay for the vast majority of situations for a general-purpose meter.

--
Rich Webb Norfolk, VA
 
On Feb 21, 2:16 pm, "(PeteCresswell)" <x...@y.Invalid> wrote:
I've got a Micronta that's getting weird on me.   Thing must be
30 years old, but it always did what little I needed of it:

- Checking automobile battery voltages

- Checking various other batteries' voltages

- Looking for shorts

Can anybody recommend a replacement that doesn't cost an arm and
a leg?

I'm thinking hardware-store quality is going tb adequate, but
don't know the ins and outs.
--
PeteCresswell
Click to expand...
Try Harbor Freight.

greg
 
(PeteCresswell) wrote:
I've got a Micronta that's getting weird on me. Thing must be
30 years old, but it always did what little I needed of it:

- Checking automobile battery voltages

- Checking various other batteries' voltages

- Looking for shorts


Can anybody recommend a replacement that doesn't cost an arm and
a leg?

I'm thinking hardware-store quality is going tb adequate, but
don't know the ins and outs
Click to expand...
(picture mode)google accu tester

300000 hits.

http://www.winparts.nl/534/werkplaats/garage-gereedschap/absaar-acculader/0106747
Click to expand...
The above link shows the one our local gasstation uses.
 
On Feb 21, 1:27 pm, "William Sommerwerck" <grizzledgee...@comcast.net>
wrote:
Harbor Freight has a digital meter for $3 -- but I don't know how sturdy it
is.
Click to expand...
I have it (among others)...it'll get you by.
 
(PeteCresswell) wrote:
- Checking automobile battery voltages

Make sure you turn on the headlights first.
Click to expand...

- Checking various other batteries' voltages

Again, no-load voltages are mostly meaningless;
Click to expand...
make yourself a test load to get any useful readings.
That the device that uses the batteries is still working properly
is the best indicator of their suitability.

There's a bi-monthly swap meet near me for computer stuff, etc.
that has old voltmeters (analog too!). They are mostly returns
that somebody blew the fuse in and returned.
Watching a needle move *can* give useful information
that a digital readout doesn't easily communicate.
 
William Sommerwerck wrote:
Harbor Freight has a digital meter for $3 -- but I don't know how
sturdy it is.
Click to expand...
The unit itself is sturdy enough for occasional use (I keep one in the car
and a couple near the workbench), but the leads are about the cheapest I
have seen, especially the banana plugs.

Still, for a couple of bucks they are good enough to have a few laying about
for when you need an extra meter.

Jon
 
On 2/21/2011 11:27 AM William Sommerwerck spake thus:

Harbor Freight has a digital meter for $3 -- but I don't know how sturdy it
is.
Click to expand...
Plenty sturdy. The weak point of these meters (I've bought several of
them) seems to be the leads, the wires of which pull out pretty easily.
Other than that, they seem as good as any other hardware-store DMM.


--
The phrase "jump the shark" itself jumped the shark about a decade ago.

- Usenet
 
In article <kce5m61psh1k63mm287qednl3eo85k4242@4ax.com>,
(PeteCresswell) <x@y.Invalid> wrote:
I've got a Micronta that's getting weird on me. Thing must be
30 years old, but it always did what little I needed of it:

- Checking automobile battery voltages

- Checking various other batteries' voltages

- Looking for shorts
Click to expand...

Can anybody recommend a replacement that doesn't cost an arm and
a leg?

I'm thinking hardware-store quality is going tb adequate, but
don't know the ins and outs.
Click to expand...
The very cheap ones sort of work ok. But pay a bit more - perhaps around
$25 dollars from Ebay - and you can get quite a decent one.

--
*Wedding dress for sale. Worn once by mistake.*

Dave Plowman dave@davenoise.co.uk London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.
 
JeffM says...

There's a bi-monthly swap meet near me for computer
stuff, etc. that has old voltmeters (analog too!). They
are mostly returns that somebody blew the fuse in and
returned. Watching a needle move *can* give useful
information that a digital readout doesn't easily
communicate.
Click to expand...
I agree. I use mine all the time, but the contacts inside
are wearing out. Where would you find an inexpensive new
analog meter? Do they even make them anymore?
 
In article <20110223-162100.250.0@news.astraweb.com>,
Peabody <waybackNO746SPAM44@yahoo.com> wrote:
There's a bi-monthly swap meet near me for computer
stuff, etc. that has old voltmeters (analog too!). They
are mostly returns that somebody blew the fuse in and
returned. Watching a needle move *can* give useful
information that a digital readout doesn't easily
communicate.

I agree. I use mine all the time, but the contacts inside
are wearing out. Where would you find an inexpensive new
analog meter? Do they even make them anymore?
Click to expand...
A half decent DVM will have a a bargraph to mimic a needle movement.

--
*The statement below is true.

Dave Plowman dave@davenoise.co.uk London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.
 
Where would you find an inexpensive new analog
meter? Do they even make them anymore?
Click to expand...
Yes. Try MCM or any other large parts distributor.
 
"Dave Plowman (News)" wrote:
In article <20110223-162100.250.0@news.astraweb.com>,
Peabody <waybackNO746SPAM44@yahoo.com> wrote:
There's a bi-monthly swap meet near me for computer
stuff, etc. that has old voltmeters (analog too!). They
are mostly returns that somebody blew the fuse in and
returned. Watching a needle move *can* give useful
information that a digital readout doesn't easily
communicate.

I agree. I use mine all the time, but the contacts inside
are wearing out. Where would you find an inexpensive new
analog meter? Do they even make them anymore?

A half decent DVM will have a a bargraph to mimic a needle movement.
Click to expand...

A decent DVM won't have a bargraph to annoy you.


--
You can't fix stupid. You can't even put a band-aid on it, because it's
Teflon coated.
 
William Sommerwerck wrote:
A decent DVM won't have a bargraph to annoy you.

That must make my Fluke 87 indecent.
Click to expand...

I prefer a good bench meter, and always found meters with bargraphs
to be very annoying. They don't have enough resolution for the work I
need a DVM for. For some jobs I've had to use a 5&3/4 digit DVM.


--
You can't fix stupid. You can't even put a band-aid on it, because it's
Teflon coated.
 
On 2/25/2011 4:10 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:
I prefer a good bench meter, and always found meters with bargraphs
to be very annoying. They don't have enough resolution for the work I
need a DVM for. For some jobs I've had to use a 5&3/4 digit DVM.
Click to expand...
For a simple "Is it more or less?" Nothing beats a DC
coupled scope. If you're tuning for a maximum (or
minimum) you can easily see that out of the corner of
your eye with out having to take your eyes off your
fingers or the end of the tool you're adjusting things
with.

Jeff
 
A decent DVM won't have a bargraph to annoy you.

That must make my Fluke 87 indecent.

I prefer a good bench meter, and always found meters with
bargraphs to be very annoying. They don't have enough
resolution for the work I need a DVM for. For some jobs I've
had to use a 5&3/4 digit DVM.
Click to expand...
If you're working at a bench, it makes sense to use a meter that sits at eye
level, rather than having to fiddle with what is basically a hand-held meter
(such as my 87).

Ad for the bar graph... I don't notice it unless I have a need for it.
 
In article <ipCdnVVbGqQnmvXQnZ2dnUVZ_hudnZ2d@earthlink.com>,
Michael A. Terrell <mike.terrell@earthlink.net> wrote:
I agree. I use mine all the time, but the contacts inside
are wearing out. Where would you find an inexpensive new
analog meter? Do they even make them anymore?

A half decent DVM will have a a bargraph to mimic a needle movement.
Click to expand...

A decent DVM won't have a bargraph to annoy you.
Click to expand...
It's there to inform. Of course information may well annoy you. And I
consider my Fluke quite decent.

--
*I want it all and I want it delivered

Dave Plowman dave@davenoise.co.uk London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.
 
Jeffrey Angus wrote:
On 2/25/2011 4:10 PM, Michael A. Terrell wrote:
I prefer a good bench meter, and always found meters with bargraphs
to be very annoying. They don't have enough resolution for the work I
need a DVM for. For some jobs I've had to use a 5&3/4 digit DVM.

For a simple "Is it more or less?" Nothing beats a DC
coupled scope. If you're tuning for a maximum (or
minimum) you can easily see that out of the corner of
your eye with out having to take your eyes off your
fingers or the end of the tool you're adjusting things
with.
Click to expand...

As long as you don't have to set something to an exact value. Too
many years in TV Broadcast & Aerospace where you had to be able to set
something to less than a 1 mV error at 15 V. :(


--
You can't fix stupid. You can't even put a band-aid on it, because it's
Teflon coated.
 
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