seek multimeter that not eat batteries or turn off

[factory]

At work I used to use a Beckman 350? DMM that had 6x D cells as the power source, no annoying auto switch off, as it had a manual power switch. They are quite old though, the plastics used for the casing degrades with age, plus the risk of it being a write-off if the batteries were Duraleak.

David

[Fungus]

At work I used to use a Beckman 350? DMM that had 6x D cells as the power source

I'm guessing it wasn't sold as a "pocket multimeter". 

[mwb1100]

He also said "...not bankrupt me or cost an amount that will never make me dare use it"   

Flukes might be prohibitively costly, but the BM235 can be had for less than $100 (though it might be harder to find than a Fluke).  And that's the meter that doesn't need APO to be turned off because it's smart enough to know when it's in use.

[J-R]

If you're in the US, FLIR is having a sale right now on the DM64 for $49 with free shipping: https://www.flir.com/products/dm64/
Best I can tell it is the BM235, although previously it has been reported the DM66 is the BM235.  The DM64 and DM66 pages on FLIR's site seem identical.

[mwb1100]

That's a darn good deal.


Update:

Scanning the FLIR DM64 an Brymen BM235 manuals the only difference I noticed was the DM64 is rated up to 600V while the BM235 is rated up to 1000V.

I noticed no differences between the DM64 and DM66 - not sure why there are two model numbers with two slightly very different prices.  DM66 is $164,  DM64 is $104 (on sale now for $50 as J-R pointed out).

The Brymen warranty is 1 year, the FLIR warranty is 3 years (though the data sheet for the DM64 says "limited lifetime", which doesn't match up with the manual it seems the datasheet is a misprint or maybe old).

[Nikola Tesla Junior IV]

FLUKE 15-17B+ and some other FLUKE allow you to disable the auto-shutoff.

If you hold down the yellow button when you turn it on, It disables the auto-shutoff feature. I believe this is true for 15-17B+ models and more. It will momentarily flash "Poff" then"Loff". Here are two pictures.

 

[Fungus]

If you're in the US, FLIR is having a sale right now on the DM64 for $49 with free shipping: https://www.flir.com/products/dm64/
Best I can tell it is the BM235.

Nice deal, get 'em while you can!

[mwb1100]

The apparent lack of difference between the DM64 and the DM66 was driving me a little crazy.  Poking around the internet, I came across an answer from a FLIR support person on an Amazon listing for the DM66:

The difference is not in terms of the technical part of the meter, but in the elements that it comes with when purchased.

the DM66 comes with:

  - DM66 with integral probe holder
  - 2 × alkaline batteries (AAA)
  - high-quality silicone test leads
  - alligator clips
  - soft carrying case

the DM64:

  - DM64 with integral probe holder
  - 2 × alkaline batteries (AAA)
  - high-quality silicone test leads
  - type K thermocouple
  - soft carrying case

So the difference between the DM64 and DM66 is that one comes with a thermocouple and the other comes with alligator clips.  Those must be some really nice alligator clips to justify a $60 difference in price!

(and the DM64 is still on sale for $50)

[huggybear404]

2 hrs is short, I want it keep going 8 hrs . I hope it turn off if batteries get <15% so it wont damage them and never turn off powered from mains ?
wish it would adjust to 4,6,8 hr before turn off , how long is battery life and are batteries included with this ?
is there a calibration for f.ex resistance so I can zero out leads and check ones at less than one ohm ?


I also hope it remember all settings for ranges, etc so I dont need adjust preferences every boot.

[huggybear404]

I repair all kinds of equpment from computers to amplifiers with rails +- over 100volt to crts with high voltage points and thats for sure not when I want meter to beep at me within minutes of turn it on. I like the xdm1041 or 1241 and will probably get one of those. I have never seen any meter with 9v battery last long time, I wish most meters use 2x aa or better yet lithium cell that recharge easy and not micro usb ports that wear out in 10 uses. I hate the aaa with max 100 mah capacity used in all kinds of things, feels like a competition to sell new batteries to get rich... My scale came with 3v clock battery to make sure I keep buy new ones, I modded it with an old mobile phone cell and now it runs years before charge.

[huggybear404]

no this use 9v batt which is 6x aaa in series so I waste not two but 6 pricy batteries for every use and 20hrs to buy batt is not impressive.
and thats what the ad promise so I dont trust it and its twice the price of the 1041 and I not love spend more than 100 euros ,some of my meters cost 5 euros tho ofcoz quality wont quite match on those. All the meters i have today are hand held ones upto a 60 euro biltema one
I know there is meters costing 3-400 euros or more but then how will I dare use them , if I check current and then forget to change mode to voltage it goes bang and I need to mortgage house to replace it > not ideal.

the 1041 seems a hundred times better and more useful than the one you list and also half price , seems fairly accurate as well
is there a better similar option thats not more expensive ? I see some say it has some bugs in the firmware , slow autoranging for caps etc

I seldom measure voltages over mains so 500 or 1000v cover most of my needs and If i need more I can use resistor divider

[BeBuLamar]

I repair all kinds of equpment from computers to amplifiers with rails +- over 100volt to crts with high voltage points and thats for sure not when I want meter to beep at me within minutes of turn it on. I like the xdm1041 or 1241 and will probably get one of those. I have never seen any meter with 9v battery last long time, I wish most meters use 2x aa or better yet lithium cell that recharge easy and not micro usb ports that wear out in 10 uses. I hate the aaa with max 100 mah capacity used in all kinds of things, feels like a competition to sell new batteries to get rich... My scale came with 3v clock battery to make sure I keep buy new ones, I modded it with an old mobile phone cell and now it runs years before charge.

So whatever you work on can be placed on a bench? If so get an AC powered meter. Also you do this as a hobby? If you do this for a living you should earn enough that a $1000 DMM won't break your bank.

[David Hess]

Older meters, even from Fluke, often ran for 2000+ hours on a 9 volt alkaline battery.  I have not seen any modern meters with long battery life.

I should have included that old meters that lasted 2000+ hours were also manual ranging meters.  One of the disadvantages at the time with autoranging multimeters was much lower battery life.  These days all multimeters have poor battery life though.

[IanB]

I should have included that old meters that lasted 2000+ hours were also manual ranging meters.  One of the disadvantages at the time with autoranging multimeters was much lower battery life.  These days all multimeters have poor battery life though.

I don't know about 2000+ hours, but the discontinued RadioShack 22-812 meter is autoranging with a 9 V battery, and it runs for months, even years, between battery changes. I have left it switched on for many hours while data logging without any noticeable impact on the battery.

[Fungus]

Fluke 27s are autoranging and go for 1000s of hours.