cal44

Help me.......I am confused. My Bently suggests I buy a Fluke 87 but there is also the Fluke 88. What the Fluke! Which one do I purchase?
Techs please reply. Mike

Driver8

http://us.fluke.com/usen/products/Fluke80SeriesV.htm

http://us.fluke.com/usen/products/Fl...keUnitedStates

cal44

I just called Fluke. These guys are very helpful. The model 87v is the one.

theiceman

don't get carried away

Flukes are very expensive. undoubtedly the best on the market IMO i have a fluke true RMS meter and i use it for work

All you really need is a basic multimeter that can do basic measurements.

rusnak

I started looking at Flukes and really wanted one, did the eBay search, etc. Eventually common sense and modesty kicked in and I realized that all I need is a Craftsman from Sears. It is super accurate, reads in true RMS, has a temperature probe, clamp for reading amperage flow through a hot wire, and a bunch of other stuff that I'll never need. I think it was around half of what I was going to pay for the Fluke. Good thing too, because I eventually bought a trick new timing light and fuel air meter.

Houpty GT

I got my Fluke for free. Fluke is great but I would not get hung up on a specific model unless you're doing serious electrical work. I used a $4 meter before the Fluke.

old man neri

The amperage clamp that 'rusnak' mention can be very handy for tracing down power leaks.

911vet

A fluke is a parasitic trematode flatworm that often inhabits aquatic life and is transmitted from one host to another through digestion...

... oh, wait, I'm not on the veterinary forum now am I?

Nevermind.

911vet

But, really, don't let your dog eat snails.

theiceman

and if the reading is right .. it's a fluke !!!

cal44

Well...........I bought a New Fluke 87v on Evilbay for $225.00. I figure what the heck, I just paid over $200 for a dumb electric fuel pump so there you have it. Plus the Fluke does house current.
Dogs eat snails? Why.....I never!
I can't imagine Scout eating a snail. I can hardly get him to eat the freshly cooked meals I prepare everyday.

theiceman

Yikes .. don't lose that meter ... !!!

At least your treating your car nice. Now if you do not have any electrical / electronics experience it may be worth taking a course to get the most out of your meter.

Not to insult you and possibly for the benefit of others . Here are some basic rules and instructions.

voltage measurement ... measured across a device, a car battery for example, with all wires in place put your leads on both terminals.Plug leads into -ve and +V for readings , could indicate +ve or -ve depending on how you hooked your wires. ( red is positive black negative )
great way of checking battery voltage or alternator output in our cars as regulators and alternators do go bad from time to time.

Current measurement. - This one is a little trickier and you need to be more carefull. in most cases you will put your meter in series. Which means disconnecting your battery. Ataching one lead to the battery , and the other lead to the wire you just disconnected. Be Carefull here because the full current will flow through the meter. It is a good habit to put the meter on it's highest current range and scale it down until you get a reasonable reading, but most newer meters have autoranging capabilities anyway . Most meters also have an internal fuse that can be replaced if it over currents.
The typical maximum reading is 10Amps, So obviously you sure don't want to crank over your starter in this configuration without a current clamp. ( another leson )
This set up is great for measuring battery drain and is usually measured in milliamps.

resistance measurements ( or ohms )
This is a check of continuity. This is most ofen used for checking for broken wires and good ground. power is supplied by an internal battery in the meter, It puts a small current out and expects the same current to return. If less returns ( or none ) it will indicate increased resistance or the maximum resistance of open circuit. you basically put one lead on one end of the cicuit and the other lead on the other. great for checking for bad and coroded grounds ( as resistance should be zero ) or as I said broken wires ( resistance will be infinity. )

Hope this helps

cal44

Iceman, thank you. I will attempt to learn as much as I can. This is a new direction for me. Might have questions for you later. Many questions..........

old man neri

If this is all new to you I would recommend you not only learn how to use the multimeter but also learn the basics of what a circuit is and how it works.

-matt

911Dave

Any good digital multimeter would do. You could have spent a quarter as much and gotten a perfectly good Craftsman one that will do anything you want.