Fluke Graphical Multimeter 863 Charger battery Eliminator

[0xsam]

(corrected the subject to accurately call it Graphical Multimeter and not Scopemeter)

A blast from the past! If you have a Fluke 860 battery eliminator can you help?

As I don't was to regurgitate a lot of the material and the discussion done on : https://www.eevblog.com/forum/testgear/fluke-867b-good-or-obsolete/ I've linked it here as it has the pics, manuals, software, experiences and funny comments.

I am a real fan of the Fluke ScopeMeter (and Graphical Multimeter) family. I know they are bulky, but I really think they are great devices. Alas, the shortfall is sadly the batteries and their charging options. I cannot believe why would a battery eliminator cost in excess of $150! I mean 

Fluke has made the charging port buried so deep into the device that normal standard connectors wouldn't get it (aside from swapping the polarities).

I have a battery that I take out and charge on my bench, but it's a pain that I've endured for years, but I simply couldn't find a reasonably priced charger for my Fluke 863.

to make one, I wanted to know the connector type? anyone has any idea what those are (part numbers and where to buy them from?). Also, if you have developed a DIY solution what did you use?

Thanks

[kripton2035]

what about this ?

[CDaniel]

Luckily someone has an extra eliminator for you , but a 12V power supply for laptop is cheap ... The long connector probably is unobtainable but some modifications can be made , or even just 2 wires ...

[0xsam]

Thanks, but this is a different scope with a port that is easily manipulated.

The one I have, Fluke 863 has the charging port, or the battery eliminator, buried deep: here is a listing that shows the picture https://www.ebay.com/itm/382213470080

The battery eliminator is being sold at ridiculous prices: see https://genesys-industries.com/DMM-scope-meters-power-analyzer-and-accessories/fluke-graphical-multimeter-860-series-battery-eliminator-power-supply-be860-flk-be860-acc-be860-120-be860-230 which shows a picture of the port needed

[0xsam]

Luckily someone has an extra eliminator for you , but a 12V power supply for laptop is cheap ... The long connector probably is unobtainable but some modifications can be made , or even just 2 wires ...

Thanks CDaniel. It is the long connector that I wanted to get some dimension on so I can make my own. I don't wish to be intrusive with the device, but all fails, I can solder a different connect to the main board.

I hope someone will get in touch if they have a spare eliminator they can part with?

[mdubinko]

@0xsam did you ever find the specifics on this?

Through the dark art of finding high-res pictures and counting pixels, I determined that the Fluke power jack on these models is pretty close to 4.5mm in diameter, slightly wider than the "pig nose" indents on the optical connector (which a kind soul spec'd out here [1]).

The Battery Extender plug has a black-plastic-covered extender and then a fairly normal barrel connector, as seen in [2].

To the resolution of blurry pixels, the metallic part is about 20% smaller, and the only remotely standard dimension for semi-commonly available connectors is 3.5x1.35mm (OD/ID). The metal barrel extends for 8.8mm and the thicker black plastic twice that, or 17.6mm.

Not that I'm able to source anything like this..


[1] https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:2618121
[2] https://genesys-industries.com/DMM-scope-meters-power-analyzer-and-accessories/fluke-graphical-multimeter-860-series-battery-eliminator-power-supply-be860-flk-be860-acc-be860-120-be860-230

[fordem]

There's a specific reason Fluke uses a non-standard connector and it's to prevent the use of generic power adapters which may not provide the isolation required if/when the scopemeter/graphical meter is being used when plugged in to a/c power.

This should also provide the reason that the a/c adapters cost what they cost - they are designed to protect you the end user and the equipment.

[mdubinko]

Hey, I don't question the ability of Fluke engineers to build a quality power supply (and for corporate to charge accordingly).

The problem in this case is that Fluke stopped making them--at least the ones with this particular connector. Anything showing up on eBay or Amazon these days is an aftermarket product. The $65 one shows a part number that you can Google and find on an $8 made-in-china piece of junk (without this magic connector, of course).

A lot of people seem to really like their 86x model Flues. Since this week, I am now among them. So we need a better solution, and instead of just complaining about it, I put together a Github repo with all available information, and even a stab at a 3D model.

https://github.com/mdubinko/Fluke-BE860-series-restoration

(I should start a separate thread for this, actually)
-m