Bench Multimeter for £30

[cropwell]

My best multimeter packed in at the weekend and I was looking at ali-express for a replacement and found the Uni-Trend UT801, costing around the £60 mark from most places. However, much to my amazement, Maplin were offering it for £30 (delivered). I haven't used it in anger yet, but it looks the job ! It is a big bugger though, as it runs off 6 C cells or a wall wart (provided) !!

http://images.maplinmedia.co.uk/uni-trend-ut801-bench-multimeter.jpg?w=283&h=283&r=4&o=StrVoCUt08@SXXA@TB4pcZ02QdEj&V=jl7d

[John S]

Cheers for that, just ordered one.

[John S]

Nipped down to Loughborough tonight as they were the only store to have one in the shop. so ordered it on line and reserved it

Got there and it had no box and the lid was missing. Well kicked off right good and proper, told them had to knock off work early, drive 25 miles uphill in the pouring rain, not fed me dog etc, etc.

Anyway got it for £22.50 with a set of batteries thrown in.
Soon make a cover on the laser, mind you that one will still go missing.

[ptjw7uk]

Must be the bargain of the week - someones trying on fleabay to sell one and its up to £41 already!

Bet they are out of stock!

peter

[Robin Hewitt]

Can't resist a bargain, hope this is a bargain, I'll let you know when it arrives :thumsup:

[cropwell]

Maplin seem to have them in stock for delivery, and delivery is included. I actually don't like Maplin, they have gone from being a useful electronics components source to a toy shop. I suppose the bean counters are in charge. With Maplin, I would have expected a price of £129.99 ! Maybe someone has made a cock-up with the price or they have a container load of them to shift. Chinese goods can be stupidly cheap, for instance, those £50 bench drills are imported by the container load at around £5 each (which is all they are worth when the quill is so sloppy !).

[Boyan Silyavski]

Forgive me my ignorance, but how is that better than my 10 euro multimeter from lidl pdm 250 a2? I see the bench one could measure temperature, but i have very good laser gun thermometer to 1300C . Anything else that one might need ? In the DIY CNC line of things i mean.

19004

[cropwell]

Forgive me my ignorance, but how is that better than my 10 euro multimeter from lidl pdm 250 a2?

In terms of measurement ranges, it does frequency, capacitance and temperature >230C. It has a large back-lit display and can be mains powered. Otherwise it is functionally the same as the lidl one, I guess.

BUT it is a Bench Multimeter, and I reckon it is big enough to use as a bench :glee:.

Rob

[Clive S]

I reckon it is big enough to use as a bench :glee:.Or a door stop when you blow it up Rob:thumsup:

[cropwell]

Or a door stop when you blow it up Rob:thumsup:


That's the multi in multimeter. Another advantage is that you are more likely to notice if one of those thieving sparkies tries to make off with it !

[Robin Hewitt]

Forgive me my ignorance, but how is that better than my 10 euro multimeter from lidl pdm 250 a2?


You obviously don't understand multimeter snobbery, if you pull anything less than a well used Fluke 17B out of your bag you cannot hope to be taken seriously. I laugh at your Lidl multimeter, "ha!" :nonchalance:

[Clive S]

You obviously don't understand multimeter snobbery, if you pull anything less than a well used Fluke 17B out of your bag you cannot hope to be taken seriously. I laugh at your Lidl multimeter, "ha!" :nonchalance:Or the good old Avo 7

[Robin Hewitt]

Or the good old Avo 7

Practically on the same spiritual plane as the orca. I envy your Avo 7, but only if you have the case :ambivalence:

[cropwell]

I envy your Avo 7, but only if you have the case :ambivalence: - In burnished leather.

[Clive S]

- In burnished leather.Of course, but I got rid and bought an Avo 8 mark 3 and that makes a very good door stop

[Lee Roberts]

That's the multi in multimeter. Another advantage is that you are more likely to notice if one of those thieving sparkies tries to make off with it !
Don't be daft they wouldn't be seen dead with anything less than a fluke, when/if they can find it amongst all that mess they call a work van :D

AvE of youtube did an interesting video recently:

https://youtu.be/XDm5BfRrAsg

Then a follow up:

https://youtu.be/rJm9iCha-jM

.Me

[Boyan Silyavski]

Don't be daft they wouldn't be seen dead with anything less than a fluke, when/if they can find it amongst all that mess they call a work van :D

AvE of youtube did an interesting video recently:

https://youtu.be/XDm5BfRrAsg

Then a follow up:

https://youtu.be/rJm9iCha-jM

.Me


this is a great video channel, quite refreshing disassemblies of stuff

[Tom J]

how you can trust your measurements with meter like that.
I compared all my flukes with those cheap crap and they were miles away - mostly in A mode, even voltage was off.
1902219023

Forgive me my ignorance, but how is that better than my 10 euro multimeter from lidl pdm 250 a2? I see the bench one could measure temperature, but i have very good laser gun thermometer to 1300C . Anything else that one might need ? In the DIY CNC line of things i mean.

19004

[cropwell]

how you can trust your measurements with meter like that.
I compared all my flukes with those cheap crap and they were miles away - mostly in A mode, even voltage was off.
1902219023

The accuracy of the UT-801 for my purposes is adequate. The €10 meters are OK for checking continuity. Voltage, resistance and current within 5% is OK if you know the limitations.
My UT-801 will sit on a bench, it doesn't have to be rugged. I am not in the habit of flinging the meter across the shop in frustration, therefore it doesn't need to be a Fluke.
The main difference between the UT-801 and a Fluke 87V is £300, which is the most significant one for me.

Cheers,

Rob

[Clive S]

Rob you are forgetting that the Fluke lets out scented magic smoke.

[Robin Hewitt]

My £30 multimeter has arrived from Maplins and it's freaking enormous...

Compared it to my Fluke on the thing I am fixing...

Fluke 1.888V UNI-T 1.887V
Fluke 1.792V UNI-T 1.794V

Close enough, possibly true :cocksure:

[Boyan Silyavski]

Guys, could you help me a bit with sth else please? Now that i learned about Fluke and Maplin :encouragement:, could sb point me to a soldering gun? I have about 4 crappy ones, and i am still not happy. Most welding that i do is CNC wiring and similar. Fine stuff i bring downtown to repair shop.

I have currently:
-German made 40W straight simple one, its a bit shaky and the cable is old and hardened. Otherwise its a wonderfully working but now tip also is hacked
-Same as above 80w from Lidl. Good one but cable is hard again, and i hate that.

the above 2 are ok for electronics but i always forget them on and could not find good new tips.

- have 2 Guns. One smaller and 1 bigger. Aldi and Lidl. In my childhood my father had one like these / Russian maybe/ and was doing all with it. It was such nice and easy to use. Problem is that the smaller is not heating enough and the bigger is heating too much and tips burned faster of the big one. The smaller has tips that do not attract well the solder flow..


So having all that in mind, i am not happy. Today i had to solder all day. So i went to repair shop and asked for advice, my friend was not there, his wife said she could order one JBC, like the simple one they use. I looked at it , nice, but 50euro. Ok , not that i am cheap but it again will be forgotten and will not be usefull for connecting together 3 thick cables, for example.

I was browsing now ebay and saw that baby: JBC2100

http://www.cetronic.es/sqlcommerce/ficheros/dk_93/productos/543074003-1.jpg



So the question is :
-will that cover my needs? at least to me it seems that it will
-this or a clone. leaning towards the original, though clone is mere 12 euro here localy


Anybody uses this one?

[Clive S]

Boyan If you are serious about soldering you need a temperature controlled one I have two of these type http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Professional-Weller-PU-3D-24V-soldering-station-and-TCP-45W-iron-/252506802608
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Professional-Weller-PS-2D-soldering-station-with-a-24-Volt-TCP-45W-iron-VGC-/282136153280
They can be left on all day without problems the bits are replaceable with different temperatures and automatically switch the current on and off.

I more modern one has the temp. control on the box. But will cost about £200 + The lead is made of silicone and flexible
I have had mine more than 30 years and still going strong they heat up in seconds.

[cropwell]

I have used an Antex TCS50 for years* and if it gives up before me I would replace it with this https://www.rapidonline.com/antex-t48jj70-tcs-digital-50w-temperature-controlled-iron-85-0555
For big joints I use a large tip to transfer heat quickly, but the tips go down to needle point, 2.3mm is the tip supplied, but I find this one useful https://www.rapidonline.com/antex-b1103h8-1103-6mm-bit-for-cs-tcs-iron-85-0511

I have a dislike of the rapid heat guns, I used to have a Russian one with a bakelite case - it was downright dangeroos.

Cheers,

Rob

*Held together with cable ties and superglue now :pride:

[Boyan Silyavski]

Thanks guys, i think it will be either the Antex TCS50W with the digital control integrated /wow/ , either both / JBC2100/

[Neale]

I used one of the earlier model Antex irons (with analogue temperature control in the handle) for quite a while and with a range of different size bits, it worked quite well. However, it does suffer from "stiff cable" problems - it's a lightweight iron and it's difficult to put it on the bench without it moving - you need a heavy stand to hold it when it is not in use. I now use a (probably more than 30 year old) Weller temperature-controlled iron which came from a scrap bin at work. I had to design and build a new temperature controller for it (Arduino-based) but it works very well, feels good in the hand, and has a very flexible silicone cable that is also heatproof. I don't know if there are any second-hand irons like this still around, but mine is the best iron I have used. You can still buy new bits for it as well. I don't know what the cheap soldering stations from Maplin are like - haven't used one.

[cropwell]

With all this talk, I got hankering for a new brandin' iron. When I read the Antex TCS50 has a silicone burn proof lead, I just had to get me one ! YeeHar !!!

Rob

[m_c]

I've got to admit, my Hakko FX-888 is probably one of the best investments I've made.

[Neale]

silicone burn proof lead,

All soldering irons should come with this as standard!

[Boyan Silyavski]

With all this talk, I got hankering for a new brandin' iron. When I read the Antex TCS50 has a silicone burn proof lead, I just had to get me one ! YeeHar !!!

Rob

You are a lucky one. When i started adding things to basket i saw a nice heavy stand for it, then i remembered i need servo cables, then shielded cables for sensors. Then i see now they have pneumatic tools. Maybe i will leave that for tomorrow, with a fresher mind ...

[Doddy]

I'll agree with Clive here.

I've used the traditional, cheap solder guns in the past and I hate them. Truly hate them. They're okay to dump heat into a mass of metal but there's no precision, and they are clumsy at best.

Now, the one Boyan linked, I know nothing about, but it's clearly designed to operate as an iron, rather than a gun (45 second heat-up time, "maintenance wattage" and so on). So, non of the advantage of a gun (not that there are many) and non of the finesse of an iron.

Boyan, if you want a crude iron for soldering big cables, why not look at the flexibility of a gas iron? (I've had good work out of a Iroda iron - e.g. ebay item 191949694792), which will double as a hot gas torch for heat-shrinking and a hot knife for cutting plastic fabrics/mesh). And it's completely portable, of course, and the bits are varied and cheap. About as cheap as the solder gun.

If, however, you want something all together different and suited to all-day operation then, as Clive says, a temperature controlled iron, or soldering station. I've grown up with Antex irons so I eventually plumbed for an Antex 660A station (e.g. ebay 380947367317) - though these cost about twice as much as the gun. A good choice of bits and plenty of power - it does anything I want of it. But, irons are very personal items, different people prefer different irons - Weller are well respected but I've never found them comfortable to use - and overpriced IMHO.

[Jonathan]

These are my most recent choices:

19079

I got the JBC soldering iron after using some in the lab. I've been doing a LOT of soldering recently. They are so nice to use I couldn't resist. It heats up faster than you can pick the iron from the stand and move it to the PCB on your desk. I can't fault it at all, but even now I've had it for a few months I'm not sure if I should have got it - just so expensive, even via eBay as this one was.

Also pictured are two desoldering options - the ZD-985 is a relatively low cost one with a vacuum pump, which is good but the guns are a bit delicate. I mainly got it because I soldered about 100 fake transistors on to something. Otherwise, for most thing's you're good with a conventional pump, but heated. You can get those for £6 here (http://cpc.farnell.com/duratool/d01849/desoldering-iron-sucker/dp/SD01702) - well worth it.

I do have an antex iron aswell - had it practically since I was in nappies. Several new tips and a new element, but it's still the same iron ;)

19080

Regarding flexible cables - you can buy the cable separately:

https://www.rapidonline.com/Antex-W021600-1-5m-Silicone-Lead-85-0590?sourceRefKey=MBpMeOAAM&filterSearchScope=1

For bigger stuff I use this:

http://cpc.farnell.com/weller/sp80nuk/soldering-iron-80w-230v-uk/dp/SD01900

Buy a few and you can solder very big stuff:

19081

If all you're doing is soldering for CNC machines, I don't see much point in getting anything fancy - it's only really worthwhile if you're soldering delicate PCBs, or just doing an awful lot of soldering. Just make sure you have an iron with enough power to deal with the bigger wires and connectors, but not something that will make a mess of anything more delicate.

[John S]

I do have an antex iron aswell - had it practically since I was in nappies.


So you have had it a month then ?

[cropwell]

I do have an antex iron as well - had it practically since I was in nappies.

I have just taken delivery of the new Antex TCS50 - and I'm probably going back to being in nappies soon :upset:

Silicone lead is quite a bit more flexible than my older Antex and it does 0 - 300 in 45 seconds with a 6mm bit on it, so I am happy (well not a miserable as I normally am !)

Cheers,

Rob

[Boyan Silyavski]

Guys, just buying cables for servo encoders and discovered this gem, getting 10m for all my stuff and if happy will change even drills and so cables.

http://www.tme.eu/en/Document/a3f4a2674b8fe27b37464cc4d530c99d/E_007-008__SiHF.pdf

I chose the 3x0.75mm silicone Helukabel cable
SIHF3X0.75 (http://www.tme.eu/es/details/sihf3x0.75/cables-con-cub-de-silicona-multihilo/helukabel/23002/) for about less than euro per meter. At same time en ebay or elsewhere at least 6euro per meter similar cables. There is a bit thinner one at 0.5mm per core which could be more suitable. 180C i think is ok given that its flexible which is more important

[JAZZCNC]

I've got one of these and love it.
I can also vouch they are strong.?? . . . Because if you drag it off the bench and run over it with pallet truck they still work. . .Lol

http://www.circuitspecialists.eu/csi-premier75w-digital-temperature-controlled-solder-station-with-75w-soldering-iron/?utm_campaign=October+2015&utm_source=emailCampaign&utm_medium=email&utm_content=

[cropwell]

Thanks Jazz, I have bookmarked the site - look to be good prices there !

[Boyan Silyavski]

At the end reason won so i bought this all for 21euro from Aliexpress : EU plug CXG 936d Digital LCD Adjustable temperature Electric Soldering station Electric soldering iron 220V 60W solder+ tip10pcs.

i watched some reviews and all said they work fine. it could have been black not some dodgy colors, but 9$ more, so i decided to be reasonable :-)

I have ordered and received from TME together with some other cable - 10m silicone 3 wire cable, which is quite nice, so once it comes i will fit some longer nice cable to it. Fit no- solder...


Plus the tips are for 900 series , means 5$- 10 tips or sth like that.



http://www.dhresource.com/0x0s/f2-albu-g2-M00-98-13-rBVaGlUwd9WAZIOxAAD5GU2qhW0493.jpg/60w-936d-digital-lcd-adjustable-temperature.jpg

[cropwell]

I know this is an old thread, but the Antex TCS50 I ordered in August 2016 has just gone bang in my hand. The silicone cable flexes too much near the exit from the iron and the conductors broke, so I took the iron to pieces and resoldered the slightly shorter lead (Thanks to the Antex iron I bought in 1978). I must have overheated something as it worked for a while, before filling the inside of the handle with black whiffle dust.

[the great waldo]

Antex had a load of problems with the tcs 50 irons (Chinese made) Luckily they honour their guarantee and send replacements. I had 2 go south one straight from the box but the latest batch of replacements have worked fine so far, and when working they work great. Although if one conks out again i'll bite the bullet and get one of these https://www.conrad.com/ce/en/product/588674/Ersa-PTC70-Soldering-iron-230-V-75-W-Chisel-shaped-250-up-to-450-C?ref=list The Ersa tips virtually last forever. I'd be curious to know what the coating is on their bits that stops them pitting.
Cheers

Andrew

[cropwell]

I don't expect a new one from Antex, this one was two years old and I attempted to repair it. Still, a reel of solder would be a nice token gesture.

[the great waldo]

I don't expect a new one from Antex, this one was two years old and I attempted to repair it. Still, a reel of solder would be a nice token gesture.Hi Cropwell
Send it back to them and they will most likely stand by thier product and send you a replacement. I've been using antex irons for 40 years and have always been well happy with them!
Cheers.
Andrew

Sent from my XT1580 using Tapatalk

[Boyan Silyavski]

Next time buy the Chinese one i bought. No problems so far. :applause:

[the great waldo]

The new antex is chinese and the first batch were duff!! A lot of chinese products are crap but there are some good one's. It's a lottery as to what you get . I have a chinese drum sander the machine cast iron is fine but the nylon lovejoy connector with the drum and motor broke every 10 mins. The company wanted 30 euros for a replacement every time it broke. I got a steel one made in uk for 10 Euros end of problem+ lesson learnt.
Cheers.

Andrew
Next time buy the Chinese one i bought. No problems so far. :applause:

Sent from my XT1580 using Tapatalk

[cropwell]

Send it back to them and they will most likely stand by thier product and send you a replacement.

I emailed the Sales Manager at Antex and he asked me to send the defunct iron back to them, which I have done. They have also taken on board my suggestion that the flex grommet should be longer and more flexible (as in the older model TC50W) as the silicone lead is more pliable and likely to have the conductors fail, as mine did (just after the flex grommet).

I have already replaced the dead iron but maybe they will respond with a new iron, then I will have three. Won't that boost my productivity:apathy:.

[cropwell]

Antex have replied with a cash offer, which was entirely satisfactory. In the meantime, I have sent them a pic of my mod
25117 and they have taken onboard the suggestion that the radius of curvature of the flex should be larger to prevent the conductors fatiguing prematurely.