# Ideal DMM



## w3st (Feb 3, 2009)

Im in an industrial E&I program....Im currently about to graduate from school and start my apprentice program at the plant. I've got all the tools I need except for my dmm and an amp clamp. The problem is that after I finish the apprentice program I'll be supplied brand new Fluke meters but until then I'd either have to supply my own or borrow somebody elses. I really dont feel like shelling out the money for my own Fluke's , just to have the company give me another set after Im done ; and I hate borrowing tools. I've been looking at some Ideal DMM's and the prices are pretty cheap considering. I'll be working on anything from small dc voltage up to 3 phase 480v with my meter. I'm just not real sure about the Ideal being safe since its only 600v class III. Anybody out there using one ? Im sure it would hold up to the 480 but Im worried how safe the Ideal would hold up to any transients. I've seen all the Fluke safety videos and feel very comfortable with them but now I'm pretty sketchy on anything else. What should I do?


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## ralpha494 (Oct 29, 2008)

Check out Fluke's web site for an article about the different classes of meters and get the highest class and voltage you can. (Class I 1000 V, Class II 600 V, etc.) You get what you pay for. Watch out for cheap imitations and meters that are only good for 300 V. Don't ask me how I know. I like the Fluke T5-600 or 1000, for it's versatility (with holster) because most of my work is under 600 V and 100 A. It doesn't do fractions of an amp or volt though.


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## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

all my meters are fluke i traded in my ideal crap long ago. i dont like ideal they feel like junk but i suppose they do the job


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## wptski (Jun 30, 2008)

Those are strange rules! What not issue the DMM, etc. when you start and if you finish, you get to keep them? Where I worked, apprentices are given a tool allowances at increments along the way through the program. Do they expect you to work without tools? Unless, you do nothing wthout a journeyman present and use their tools??


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## MDShunk (Jan 7, 2007)

Can you afford about 100 bucks? Get a Fluke T5. That's what you'll find many guys use from day to day.


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## paulcanada (Feb 6, 2009)

I am in a similar situation. They give us Greenlee's at work once we become j-men but I am tired of always using someone else's meter... so I was looking at getting the Ideal 61-736. Basically I need a relatively simple meter that can measure AC and DC voltage (true RMS would be nice), measure ohms, and clamp AC loads over 100 amps. I was hoping to get 1 meter instead of two right now and thought the Ideal one looked allright... anyone used it? Are they that much worse than the Fluke? I know the Fluke are nice but the 332 clamp is quite a bit more money.

Paul.


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## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

paulcanada said:


> I am in a similar situation. They give us Greenlee's at work once we become j-men but I am tired of always using someone else's meter... so I was looking at getting the Ideal 61-736. Basically I need a relatively simple meter that can measure AC and DC voltage (true RMS would be nice), measure ohms, and clamp AC loads over 100 amps. I was hoping to get 1 meter instead of two right now and thought the Ideal one looked allright... anyone used it? Are they that much worse than the Fluke? I know the Fluke are nice but the 332 clamp is quite a bit more money.
> 
> Paul.


i had one of those extech clamp meters before they had a laser thermometer and a thermocouple on it. they were pretty nice


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## ce2two (Oct 4, 2008)

I use the fluke 77 DVM , for for phases , including comm. work ,nothing like a quick freq. check our data were looking for primarily 1197 hz... this has got to be one of my fav's ....:thumbsup:


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## JPRO2 (Dec 17, 2008)

i would suggest a greenlee cm-600 its what i have and i have used it on 347v no problems pretty cheap too i paid about 90 bucks


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## JPRO2 (Dec 17, 2008)

good up to 600amps and its a clamp meter and good for 600v


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## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

i just started thinking about this. if someone has an amprobe rated for 1000 amps...where would you see a single conductor carrying 1000 amps? nobody ever runs something that large and most services or feeders like that are parallel. a flexible CT would be better to circle all those conductors at once. or just measure each one at a time then add them up or measure one and multiply it by number of conductors per phase.

the millivolt selection is a must for a DMM. you can use it to troubleshoot circuit breakers and connections


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## MechanicalDVR (Dec 29, 2007)

electricalperson said:


> i just started thinking about this. if someone has an amprobe rated for 1000 amps...where would you see a single conductor carrying 1000 amps? nobody ever runs something that large and most services or feeders like that are parallel. a flexible CT would be better to circle all those conductors at once. or just measure each one at a time then add them up or measure one and multiply it by number of conductors per phase.
> 
> the millivolt selection is a must for a DMM. you can use it to troubleshoot circuit breakers and connections


 
How about a 4160 service for a large chiller or some other type of similar application. Think in terms larger than 480v.


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## w3st (Feb 3, 2009)

I dont know if anybody out there's really not understanding? I understand that going phase to phase isnt ever gonna give me 600v under normal circumstances but what about transient voltage? And Im not too worried about 4160, uhm NOBODY's gonna try to go anywhere near that with ANY handheld meter.


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## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

MechanicalDVR said:


> How about a 4160 service for a large chiller or some other type of similar application. Think in terms larger than 480v.


in my area theres not too many places that have 4160 i know of just one place that has a motor like that

will they run 2000 or 1000 mcm conductors and not paralell those?


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## paulcanada (Feb 6, 2009)

how do you use millivolts to troubleshoot breakers? i have never been shown that.

paul.


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## electricalperson (Jan 11, 2008)

paulcanada said:


> how do you use millivolts to troubleshoot breakers? i have never been shown that.
> 
> paul.


stick one lead on the same phase the breaker is and the other lead on the load side of the breaker. depending on the voltage drop across you can have a bad breaker if its tripping for no reason. its called the fall of potential test


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## paulcanada (Feb 6, 2009)

thanks.


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## wptski (Jun 30, 2008)

A voltage drop of more than 100mv across a breaker is considered bad.


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## 5486 (Feb 18, 2009)

MDShunk said:


> Can you afford about 100 bucks? Get a Fluke T5. That's what you'll find many guys use from day to day.


Best responce here, you can always find a place for a T-5 after getting the company meter. Fluke is the only meter I would trust.


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## Aiken Colon (May 16, 2008)

Fluke owns Amprobe. That would be a lower cost solution for you, and still get Fluke backing and reliability. Here is the list off 1000a that are very common. Only the Fluke is USA made, all others are imports including the Amprobe.

We sell a few of these http://www.aikencolon.com/Amprobe-ACD-31P-1000A-Clamp-Power-Meter_p_1605.html

The Ideal one would be the 774 http://www.aikencolon.com/Ideal-61-774-TightSight-Clamp-Meters-1000-Amp_p_535.html

Extech would be http://www.aikencolon.com/Extech-EX830-EX-830-1000A-Clamp-Meter_p_1657.html - Extech has built in IR thermometer and Type K Thermometer

Fluke is the 330 series and you have a few to choose from there. We had a thread on here at the end of the year for 10% off on overstock items. I have still have the 336 laying around from that special. http://www.aikencolon.com/Fluke-336A-336-A-600-AMP-True-RMS-Digital-Clamp-Meter_p_1568.html


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## wptski (Jun 30, 2008)

Aiken Colon said:


> Fluke owns Amprobe. That would be a lower cost solution for you, and still get Fluke backing and reliability. Here is the list off 1000a that are very common. Only the Fluke is USA made, all others are imports including the Amprobe.
> 
> We sell a few of these http://www.aikencolon.com/Amprobe-ACD-31P-1000A-Clamp-Power-Meter_p_1605.html
> 
> ...


Where did you get your info about all Fluke is USA made? In a discussion at Fluke's site about the 337 and 337A difference, a Fluke Tech stated that: The Fluke 337 was made in Thailand; the 337A is made in China.


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## Aiken Colon (May 16, 2008)

wptski said:


> Where did you get your info about all Fluke is USA made? In a discussion at Fluke's site about the 337 and 337A difference, a Fluke Tech stated that: The Fluke 337 was made in Thailand; the 337A is made in China.


I apologize. What I meant to say is that while some of Fluke's line is made in the U.S.A., none of the Amprobe line is.

JJ


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