Looking For Usable Multimeter - Cheap

Harbor Freight has a digital meter for $3 -- but I don't know how sturdy it is.

Try Harbor Freight.

greg

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.

it

I have it (among others)...it'll get you by.

(picture mode)google accu tester

The above link shows the one our local gasstation uses.

Make sure you turn on the headlights first.

Again, no-load voltages are mostly meaningless; 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.

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:

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 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.

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.

Yes. Try MCM or any other large parts distributor.

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.

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

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.

It's there to inform. Of course information may well annoy you. And I consider my Fluke quite decent.

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. :(