Fluke DMM recommendations?

Check with Fluke.

a) many have actual lifetime guarantees. b) they will fix many others for a nominal fee, if any.

Peter Wieck Wyncote, PA

Series IV now.

Mine's a series II.

Graham

I would recommend the Fluke 87 series. Check them out. These are excellent meters for general troubleshooting. This is the main stream model we use in our facilities.

We also have a number of Fluke 27 military versions. These are used mainly in outdoor conditions in all weather conditions. The 27 does not have all the features of the 87, but it is still good for general troubleshooting. I believe the 27 will even float! It is water proof.

Fluke gives excellent warranty plans, and they give excellent service and calibration.

We never buy used test equipment. We found that they need calibration, and many times, they were sold used because there were fault conditions.

Fluke meters are a high quality industry standard.

Fluke 27:

Fluke 87:

--

JANA _____

Yeah, I know, I can simply shop on-line or visit local pawn shops and buy another. There are plenty of them out there, but I'm not really comfortable buying a used meter. Lord knows what's happened to it, and I took good care of MINE. And I doubt Fluke is still making 77s. (If I'm wrong, please tell me.) I've worked on mine often enough over its lifetime that if I sent it to Fluke for real repair and calibration, they'd just laugh and stuff it right back in the box and ship it back to me with a note saying "Buy a new one." (The store I bought it from, Industrial Electronics, just off Montgomery Street in Fort Worth, closed several years ago.) Does Fluke offer refurbished models for sale? (Sorry for not checking that in advance...)

The Fluke 77 does everything I need, but there's one feature that I've practically never used: Touch-Hold. I mention this because I'm sure Fluke's current new crop of digital multimeters can do everything the 77 did, plus a great deal more. I don't want anything more than what I've got now; I wouldn't use the capacitance test function, or a big LCD scope meter, or a USB port, or an automatic dish washer or anything else. I'd just like to replace what I've got with something new, be it a new model number or whatever.

There's a Fry's Electronics here in Arlington that carries a lot of good test equipment (I bought a Tektronix dual-polarity benchtop power supply from them a few years ago on sale because it was a showroom model, and I'm still very pleased with it), but I haven't gone shopping there yet because I wanted to ask everyone here first: What should I look for in today's Fluke DMMs, and which ones should I avoid?

I'd like to keep the same physical size if at all possible, because the original 77 fits snugly into my toolbox (an old ammunition box). I don't think anything much bigger would fit in there.

Now for my next problem: making my old meter fit in my photo album. :)

Thanks!!! Matt J. McCullar, KJ5BA Arlington, TX

It's a great feature for those times when you're in tight quarters and/or absolutely have to keep your eyes on the test probe while measuring. I don't use it every day, but I use it often enough to want it on my next meter.

Have been using Fluke 73 and 77 handhelds in the field with good results. But for Christmas I think I'd really like a backlit display under certain conditions.

I see that the 87 is a common model. How many rev's have there been? It's now

Other models? I don't need any fancy features such as frequency or duty cycle, just basic VOA and maybe C. But it must be Fluke (tried a good Chinese meter but found couldn't adjust to its design quirks), LCD, backlit, and use common batteries (no proprietaries). 3.5 digit is OK.

Suggestions? Recommendations? Testimonials?

Thanks,

The 87 is an excellent choice--accurate, rugged, all the right features. I've had one at work and one at home for well over a decade--no problems. I especially like the 4-1/2 digit option.

Cheers

Think you'll find the Fluke *is* a Chinese meter...;-)

All of my Flukes, including my very nice new 8845A, say "made in USA."

ftp://jjlarkin.lmi.net/MadeInUSA.JPG

Are any of their low-end things actually Chinese?

Everybody else - Agilent, Keithley, BNC, Wavetek - are selling their names and shipping Chinese junk. The low-end Tek scopes are made in China, but I think they're still Tek designs.

John

Yup. I've seen several on ebay.co.uk. None at the moment though. Maybe they closed down the supply ? They were too good value ! This looks like one of them on the US site

Now try finding it on the Fluke US or UK site. But here it is

Graham

I got a flier from an electronics company the other day with some Fluke models on special offer and that said they were made in China. They could have been wrong, of course - you'd need to see the actual unit to be sure.

Just because it's designed/made in China doesn't make it junk. They are perfectly capable of making high quality stuff as well as rubbish. You need to blame the brand name if they allow crap to be sold using their logo.

My Fluke 8012A, 45, 87, 89-IV, and 12B dvms all say "Made in the USA".

However, my Fluke 62 ir thermometer says "Made in China".

Bob

That could be the protective Porcelain for the sensor, or am I missing something?

;-)

I second that, the robot produced computer cards for example seem very well made to me.

Cheers ........... Rheilly P

Who ? CPC ?

They're damn HOT.

Graham

Fluke does manufacture an alternate range in China for domestic use.

Graham

Not much difference between the models. Improved accuracy is the main thing, and LCD displays have gotten better (bigger digits, better contrast, better backlight). The latest 87-V has a slightly different "look" to previous models.

Stick with either the 70, 170, or 80 series. Do not touch the big 'data logger" 189 model, they are power hogs and chew batteries in no time. Don't know about the new 289.

There is big market for used items on Ebay. Some good bargains to be had.

Dave.

The Fluke Chinese "market test" started with the experimental Fluke 19 released in the Asia Pacific market. Used the same chipset as the 87 at the time, and offered unbelievable value for money. It was too good to be true, most Fluke 19's failed with all sorts of problems. They learned a few things from that and the 110 series is now a lot better, but still made in China.

They 170, 80, and higher models are all still made in the US last I checked. Fluke have been careful to keep their Chinese meters separate from their US made meter range. Only the US meters have the lifetime warranty.

Dave.

Porcelain = China, me tea cup ;-p

Got details, model, price etc ?

Graham