-1

Bought a $200 multimeter and it burned me

Spent $200 on a Fluke multimeter last month. Thought I was getting top quality. Damn thing gave me wrong readings on a dryer thermal fuse. Replaced the fuse for free and it popped again. Checked with my old $40 meter and found the real issue. Sometimes spending more doesn't mean better. Anyone else get burned by an overpriced tool?

4 comments

4 Comments

the_jennifer23d ago

Yeah, I read somewhere that Fluke had a bad batch a while back. Something about the firmware glitching on some of their newer models. Doesn't surprise me you got burned on that price tag. For two hundred bucks you'd expect perfect results every time, not a shock when you touch a thermal fuse. Your old $40 meter probably saved you more time and hassle than that Fluke ever will.

the_max23d ago

Think you just got a bad unit.

diana_west2723d ago

Friend of mine had nearly the same thing happen with a Fluke he bought off Amazon. Spent close to three hundred on one of those newer models with the touchscreen and all that fancy stuff. First time he used it on a live circuit, the display started flickering then just went black. He sent it back for warranty and they told him it was water damage, even though he never got it wet. Meanwhile his old cheapo meter from Harbor Freight still works fine after like six years of abuse. Makes you wonder if they've been cutting corners on quality control lately or what.

price.gavin23d ago

Honestly, did your friend ever try to pull the board out and look for any obvious corrosion or burn marks? I mean, Fluke's warranty department is notorious for denying claims on stuff they claim is "water damaged" when it's actually just a cold solder joint or a bad capacitor that popped. Idk, maybe it's just me but I've seen enough teardown videos where the new Fluke boards have way less conformal coating than the old ones used to. Makes you wonder if they're just spraying the stuff on with a water gun instead of dipping the whole board like they used to.