I give up for today. Can’t find what I want. Yeah that 101 is interesting. I don’t understand why more of them adopt that sort of current soaking with a large resistor. It would make them much more robust at very little cost. They almost get there then they back off. Maybe they want them to break to sell more.

Pay more, buy one. Fluke. That's what I finally did years ago, and I've never regretted it. Accurate, rock solid, best meter I've ever used. I did pay more because I never wanted another- Fluke 289 True RMS. It is a _fantastic_ meter.

 

I have a fluke and a Sperry. Just looking for something specific. The accuracy is not an issue with the cheap meters they do what they say. It’s mainly their BS CAT ratings and poor input protection which isn’t an issue with low voltage and low current.

It’s like my Snap on and MAC tools vs cheap harbor freight ones. Sometimes good enough is good enough. Other times I need the accuracy and hardened metals and I pay for them.

I currently have 3 areas I use a meter at. Soon to be 4. Just get lazy at moving things and forgetting something.

 

I give up for today. Can’t find what I want. Yeah that 101 is interesting. I don’t understand why more of them adopt that sort of current soaking with a large resistor. It would make them much more robust at very little cost. They almost get there then they back off. Maybe they want them to break to sell more.

Why don't you make a purpose built LED tester? It could autocheck polarity, voltage, and supply known fixed currents on demand. It would be a nice project.

 

If I were required to buy a Fluke handheld meter, the only choice would be the 289. Lucky for me, that's not a requirement as the slow boot times, poor display, short battery life and show graphing are much to be desired. It's too bad they don't offer any modern meters for electronics use but I doubt there was much of a market for meters like the 87IV and 189 or they would continue to offer them.

 

If I were required to buy a Fluke handheld meter, the only choice would be the 289. Lucky for me, that's not a requirement as the slow boot times, poor display, short battery life and show graphing are much to be desired. It's too bad they don't offer any modern meters for electronics use but I doubt there was much of a market for meters like the 87IV and 189 or they would continue to offer them.

I have a 287 and there are certainly pain points but it's a very nice meter. I do wish they offered a modern version.

 

I compared the UNI-T UT181A with a Fluke 289. The 181A is basically a modern clone. The menus are for the most part the same except where UNI-T made a few improvements. Faster boot times, faster graphing, better display. The 181A was also the most temperature stable meter I have looked at. They also offer a BLE interface for it which with some effort I was able to get working with LabView. The electronics components used look good. Certainly the best product I have looked at from UNI-T.

 

Why don't you make a purpose built LED tester? It could autocheck polarity, voltage, and supply known fixed currents on demand. It would be a nice project.

I like the idea. It would look like tweezers for smd LEDs. Something that can check 5mm to the tiny 0402 types. I just got some and they are a challenge to work with. Except for the white they all look the same. I’m gonna search for something like that because as fun as it sounds I just need something that works.

Like this. This one is powered using lithium and might be enough to light a single led.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/BM8...b5-492d-9034-e035d2c94da7&transAbTest=ae803_5

 

I do like both the Fluke and Probe Master needles. These are both really nice for surface mount work.

 

I have the TENMA 72-7780 and the UNI-T 61E, both true rms, 6000 count display, the tenma has NCV detection, which is the same as the UNI-T 139C without rs232 interface, the Uni T 61E has no backlight, but i have put one in..

 

@joeqsmith If you were going to choose the smallest well-built DMM you know of, which would that be?

Fixed leads is OK because size matters in this case. I am looking for a “pocket” meter for a very-small-toolkit I am building up.
Any ideas?

I have the Sanwa PM300 and it is quite a well built meter. It has a nice visible LCD (no backlight) and Its only drawbacks are the quiet buzzer and the lack of a tilt bail. It is rated for CAT IV 300V and CAT III 600V.

I have the TENMA 72-7780 and the UNI-T 61E, both true rms, 6000 count display, the tenma has NCV detection, which is the same as the UNI-T 139C without rs232 interface, the Uni T 61E has no backlight, but i have put one in..

I have both as well, and the UT139C is much more promising in terms of surge suppression and protection. The UT61E non-GS version is quite "fragile" if subjected to a transient (as Joe can attest) - that is why mine only lives in the electronics bench.

 

Don't call me an idiot and joe keep your 100A welder away from this... I got a 20K count for $23. There are no transients by me... I live in a nice neighborhood.



and this:

 

Really not relevant but did you know you can still buy a Simpson 260? Really, you can, I just checked.

 

You know your addicted when you smoke one every day for your fix.

 

What did you smoke @Wendy

 

Don't call me an idiot and joe keep your 100A welder away from this... I got a 20K count for $23. There are no transients by me... I live in a nice neighborhood.

Even if the meter has cheap 220V glass fuses, I doubt my welder would do anything to it as its output voltage is so low.

I imagine most of the high voltage transients I produce come from not having a strap on.

I did look at an AN860B. Pretty much what you would expect.

 

@joeqsmith i really appreciate that you and Dave and the others have shared your understanding and results with the rest of us so that we are making informed decisions and are able to use them safely. I have a better understanding of how the current shunts and the other protection circuits work. That’s true about the welders... mine puts out 180A but drops the voltage down to about 30 VDC from 240 VAC to do it.

 

What did you smoke @Wendy

Transistors occasionally, and I would brand the part no. into my skin to prove it, Fortunately the brands were temporary, if painful. Cheaper than your addiction though.

Lessons learned this way tend to stick with you.

 

Transistors occasionally

Come on 20k count for $23 how can you beat that? I don’t plan on smoking it. I have toasted cheap Chinese regulators from time to time.

If the Chinese built true CAT rated meters it would really be disruptive to the market.

 

>> If the Chinese built true CAT rated meters it would really be disruptive to the market.
I'm not sure what you meant. Obviously China does produce some meters that have been certified. The reports are on-line if you to have a look. UNI-T even offers some of them. Keep in mind that passing the safety standards does not mean a meter will be robust. I've said several times that I am really more interested in knowing if a meter passes the IEC 61326 than the 61000. Even then as I look at some of these meters like the Gossen Ultra, I have to question the standards.

 

If these $20 meters were actually CAT rated correctly and were robust as the $400+ meters it would make the $400 meters much harder to sell. At one point Fluke blocked any multi-meter from being produced/imported that were yellow... Harley did same by getting tariffs for larger engines and even trademarking the Harley engine sound. I can't imagine it would add more than $5-10 per unit for the Chinese to build similar units. But doing so would ruin the market for $400+ multimeters and be disruptive to the market in general. Yes there are some that will only buy the best brand... but I believe there are more that are willing to save money.

Me, I like my name brand stuff... I even got the same Kennedy tool chest that they issued for me in the military which housed all my micro miniature tools. That is an awesome toolbox. But I am truly amazed at the range and precision of these hobby meters from China.