Who makes a good ammeter? One you clamp on a wire(ac voltage) and it reads the amps? My HF one is ok but it varies depending on where the wire is located between the clamps.
Fluke? Anyone else?
Fluke? Anyone else?
Quality ammeter.
- Thread starter Chris142
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I have had good luck with a standard Ideal clamp/meter as DYIer and maintance guy at a mid size printer. Not in the league as Fluke, but I don't want/need that tier of quality for what I use it for.
IDEAL Clamp Meter 600 Amp AC with NCV 61-744 - The Home Depot
The Clamp Pro Clamp meters from Ideal are a rugged and affordable clamp meter with all the basic functions electricians and technicians need to test and troubleshoot electrical circuits. They are CAT III rated and measure AC amperage up to 600 Amp, AC and DC voltage, continuity and more. The...
www.homedepot.com
Klein, Triplett, Amprobe. Fluke makes them in all price ranges.
You don't need pro quality. You aren't climbing HV towers, are you? (LOL)
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Fluke clamp-ons were what we used in the Navy, and also what the company I work for now uses. There’s certainly other good ones, but as always you get what you pay for. There’s no “good” $20 ammeter.
JHZR2
Staff member
Fluke or Extech. I love their mA rated unit.
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I agree that you need a reasonable value for money! I usually buy on Amazon, test and draw conclusions!
If you want to use it on a car, make sure it actually reads DC with the clamp.
A lot of them don't, you have to use the probes, which ist often not helpful for - let's say a starter (or almost anything on a car).
Also what makes an ammeter meter "good"?
In my book, there is rather "good enough", since for the occasional measuring of some stuff on my car, a halfway decent reading within a certain tolerance is more than good enough. I don't run an electric lab where I need absolute precision down to a milliamp.
So when it comes to ROI - probably the cheapest Amazon meter will do the trick for me - your mileage may vary though.
A lot of them don't, you have to use the probes, which ist often not helpful for - let's say a starter (or almost anything on a car).
Also what makes an ammeter meter "good"?
In my book, there is rather "good enough", since for the occasional measuring of some stuff on my car, a halfway decent reading within a certain tolerance is more than good enough. I don't run an electric lab where I need absolute precision down to a milliamp.
So when it comes to ROI - probably the cheapest Amazon meter will do the trick for me - your mileage may vary though.
uni-t
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- Mar 8, 2022
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- 115
I had an Ex-Tech clamp amp meter and below 20-30 amps AC it was almost useless. The low end DC readings weren’t good either. I ended up with a high end Fluke. You can also get an AC/DC amp clamp attachment from Fluke that also works well. I have a 10A AC clamp from AMEC I use for checking loads on small 480 and 120v equipment. Accurate and not real pricy.
what is your budget? I have a chinese one seems pretty good but sometimes you have to read the manual to get it on the right setting its not very intuitive.
Klein 900
or this cheaper model may do everything you need. Klein CL390
Fluke is the gold standard but the prices are hard to stomach unless you use it for work everyday.
Klein 900
or this cheaper model may do everything you need. Klein CL390
Fluke is the gold standard but the prices are hard to stomach unless you use it for work everyday.
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Can you confirm how small a value the 325 will read in DC?
JHZR2
Staff member
I validated my extech with a wired in series fluke meter. They were both reading the same. You need to make sure a clamp is designed for the right range. My mA dc extech is very accurate assuming you can get a good zero. That’s the biggest issue with dc clamp meters in tight spaces.
I think as low as 10mA. I've used it to detect parasitic draw in one car with success. It's very accurate. Friend has one of the cheaper brands and it was reading wild and all over. For AC, his was pretty accurate for the price but for DC kind of useless. Can't recall the brand but he bought it at HW store.
Out of curiosity, What % of reading variation did you see when moving the wire and what current were you measuring?
I just bought a Fluke 325, after messing around with a cheap Sperry from Menards for several years. The Sperry was fine for rough checks of DC current. I didn't expect much and never really trusted it. The other source of variation is making sure the jaws are together properly before zeroing and while measuring. The Fluke seems to have better fitting jaws. Just like torque wrenches, there is no such thing as super accuracy when trying to measure down in the mA range with a clamp designed for 400A. The 325 will measure down to 0.010 Adc at +/- 2% +/- 5 digits which is fine for my use. How accurate do you need it to be is the big question. If you're consistently down in the mA range and want accuracy, wire in a series ammeter, precision shunt, or get a clamp designed for accuracy at low currents. You'll notice they have much smaller jaws and cost more.
Just for ref. my Fluke 177 DVM will measure DC current down to +/- 1% + 3 digits
I'll have to mess around with the 325 and see how much variation I get from moving the wire around in the clamp, real world applications may prevent having it centered in the jaws.
I just bought a Fluke 325, after messing around with a cheap Sperry from Menards for several years. The Sperry was fine for rough checks of DC current. I didn't expect much and never really trusted it. The other source of variation is making sure the jaws are together properly before zeroing and while measuring. The Fluke seems to have better fitting jaws. Just like torque wrenches, there is no such thing as super accuracy when trying to measure down in the mA range with a clamp designed for 400A. The 325 will measure down to 0.010 Adc at +/- 2% +/- 5 digits which is fine for my use. How accurate do you need it to be is the big question. If you're consistently down in the mA range and want accuracy, wire in a series ammeter, precision shunt, or get a clamp designed for accuracy at low currents. You'll notice they have much smaller jaws and cost more.
Just for ref. my Fluke 177 DVM will measure DC current down to +/- 1% + 3 digits
I'll have to mess around with the 325 and see how much variation I get from moving the wire around in the clamp, real world applications may prevent having it centered in the jaws.
JHZR2
Staff member
It depends upon local magnetic fields. And where you zero it for dc, and how consistently you zero it.
Unfortunately it’s hard to answer as a result. Could be quite a bit.
I have an Ideal model 747 clamp on meter and like it a lot.
