CLAMP METER?

[Sactownbully84]

lookn for a clamp meter to test my amp, and my HO ALT trying to keep it under 100 bones. i know fluke is the but im not gonna spend that much for a hobby. i would'nt use it that much to spend that much money so here is a link to one tell me if its kool...i know im looking for "TRUE RMS" and "DC" amperage testing capability

http://cgi.ebay.com/RMS-AC-DC-Clamp-Meter-Ammeter-DMM-Capacitor-Tester-HVAC_W0QQitemZ370353776016QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item563ace2590

[Sactownbully84]

or should i go with the....

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Craftsman-400A-AC-DC-Clamp-Meter-11-Functions-82369_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem3a59282c65QQitemZ250603908197QQptZMotorsQ5fAutomotiveQ5fTools

i know the brand so im leanin' towards this one

Edited March 25, 2010 by Sactownbully84

[MikeyF]

The first one looks just fine man. But when you are testing amps, etc, you usually will need two meters, one to clamp the wire, and the other go test the voltage of your speaker outputs. I also don't think the second one is a true rms meter either.

[blackrosetiger]

I'd go for the Craftsman only because of the warrenty you can walk into any Sears (and I think Kmart now) and exchange it

[Sactownbully84]

The first one looks just fine man. But when you are testing amps, etc, you usually will need two meters, one to clamp the wire, and the other go test the voltage of your speaker outputs. I also don't think the second one is a true rms meter either.

i have a DMM also so i could use that. also what is the different between "TRUE RMS" and one that's not? they both have the same margin of error like 3% give or take

Edited March 25, 2010 by Sactownbully84

[Sactownbully84]

I'd go for the Craftsman only because of the warrenty you can walk into any Sears (and I think Kmart now) and exchange it

even if i bought it from ebay i could return it 4 a new one?

[tommyk90]

I picked up an 800 amp, AC/DC, true RMS craftsman clamp meter off ebay for $61 shipped.

Just like THIS one.

It also has peak hold so you don't have to be holding the meter to get readings.

Also, I snagged a fluke 337 off ebay as well (because i needed 2 clamp meters anyways), so when I get that one I'm gonna do a head-to-head comparison and see how accurate the craftsman one is.

So far though, the craftsman has been doing very well. The only thing I can complain about is that it gives "ghost" readings, meaning it's reading current even though it's not clamped around anything. But since it's so low (in the 10-15 amp area) it doesn't really affect my readings. Just annoying.

Edited March 25, 2010 by tommyk90

[audiofanaticz]

I picked up an 800 amp, AC/DC, true RMS craftsman clamp meter off ebay for $61 shipped.

Just like THIS one.

It also has peak hold so you don't have to be holding the meter to get readings.

Get this clamp!! Im using the sameone, as tommy said, it has peak hold/min, its true rms, and does dc current up to 800amps

The other craftsman that was linked to that is red is not the professional line, and is not true rms and does not have peak hold (it just has hold which holds whatever number is on the screen when you push hold).

The red craftsman will take 2 people to clamp an alt or amp, the yellow craftsman professional will only take 1 person due to the peak hold functions.

Oh and the yellow craftsman professional is also led backlit for those late nights testing in the dark.

the cheaper craftsman is sold at most sears for $60ish new, the professional is useually special order and is a $120 clamp.

Edited March 25, 2010 by Audiofanaticz

[tommyk90]

I have one of the cheaper craftsmans as well if anyone wants to buy it! Haha.

[Derrick824]

I have two of those same yellow Craftsman clamps as well as a Fluke and they all read identical.