I'm going to be buying a multimeter in the next day or two because I need it to troubleshoot a friend's motorcycle... which isn't getting power. I also figured I could use it on a car in the future...

I'm going with a Fluke... and this is the list I'm using... http://www.omnicontrols.com/fl...t.pdf

Should I get the Model 177 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...=WDVW for like $50 bucks...

the 87 for around $120 http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...&rd=1 ...

or the 187 for $300.

Are there features I really should have or is the basic one sufficient... any help would be great. Thanks.

 

I would just get the 177. for trouble shooting a bike you really only need DC voltage and resistance. THe other meters are designed more for HVAC use.

I'm not sure of the price but teh Fluke 16 is a great meter. you dont have to change the leads when switching from the different scales, its auto ranging, and will measure jsut about everything but frequency. I'd check the price of that meter and if its cheap get that, otherwise the 177 will do the job

 

Thanks for the reply... just for my own future knowledge, whats HVAC and what would frequency be used to measure?

 

Where did you see HVAC? The first thing that comes to mind is Heating Ventalation and A/C - I belive you would have a ammeter clamp come with the meter for these kits that can directly measure amperage by using a clothes-pin type device that basically clamps around the wire while it's on to test.

Frequency would allow you to test AC waveforms (typically 60hz for household but for different applications this can change) at the same time - you should be able to test the period (remember sine waves back in trig?? :D) - the quality/features of the meter will spec how high a frequency it can handle and read.

-Shane

 

High Voltage AC. None of the meters listed are designed exclusively for high voltage. If all you are doing is basic measurements a cheapy will work fine.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by o_Rage_o &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Where did you see HVAC? The first thing that comes to mind is Heating Ventalation and A/C - I belive you would have a ammeter clamp come with the meter for these kits that can directly measure amperage by using a clothes-pin type device that basically clamps around the wire while it's on to test.

Frequency would allow you to test AC waveforms (typically 60hz for household but for different applications this can change) at the same time - you should be able to test the period (remember sine waves back in trig?? :D) - the quality/features of the meter will spec how high a frequency it can handle and read.

-Shane</TD></TR></TABLE>

he saw HVAC from my post. basically its heating ventilation and air conditioning so you'd use voltage both AC and DC, resistance. You'd also use the milivolt scale for checking the output of a thermocouple and the microamp scale for testing the output of a flame rod and similar flame safties. meters like the fluke 16 have all these built into one for convenience.

as far as frequency, its useful when working with variable frequency drive motors where you can change the motor speed by changing the AC frequency.

The clamp on ammeter is sold with the meter or separate depending on whether or not you buy the kit or if you want ones that work in different scales. ie, 0-200amps, or 200-1000amps come to mind.

as for trouble shooting the bike. get the basic one.

 

good info..

but ugh, brings to mind hours of thermocouple calibration in the labs...stupid school, i'm glad its summer!

-rage

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by o_Rage_o &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"> good info..

but ugh, brings to mind hours of thermocouple calibration in the labs...stupid school, i'm glad its summer!

-rage</TD></TR></TABLE>

lol...i do this for a living so i have no choice but to like it. thermocouple calibration? can you breifly explain the process to me? i've never heard of something like that. all the thermocouples and thermopiles i've seen are totally sealed so the only way to really "calibrate" them is to adjust how close the flame is to the hot junction. I've done the closed and open circuit tests too.