Fluke 5100B calibrator, any tips?

[Lightages]

I am considering buying a calibrated Fluke 5100B multifunction calibrator. It will ave to travel from the US to Chile. Anything I should be aware of? Concerns?

I will be using this to calibrate handheld meters for the most part. This will become part of my support for my sales.

Thanks for any opinions.

[Excavatoree]

The Fluke 5100B is a nice unit.   I own one of these, which sadly has developed a problem.

I purchased it from a seller who also repairs these, who claims that due to the age of the units, are unsupported by Fluke and many equipment repair specialists.  He even claimed that he was the only repair person for these in the U.S.  I don't know if these claims are true, but I do know they are plausible given Fluke's limited support of older equipment.

I am trying to decide whether it's worth the shipping to send mine back to him for repair, or simply scrap the unit.  Unless you have someone in your country that can repair and calibrate the unit, you will find shipping very expensive.   These are heavy, large units, and they are also fragile.   I'd hate to think of how much it would cost to get one to your area.  (Unless you are shipping it as part of a large lot such that the incremental cost of adding this unit is low.)

[Lightages]

Repair is one thing, calibration can be done in Chile. Perhaps it would e better to get a 6.5 digit class multimeter and some references with the specific values needed for calibrating the instruments I will be calibrating and keep the 6.5 digit class meter calibrated locally.  This could get rather messy however.

When you say fragile, fragile like a tube amp fragile?

[Excavatoree]

Probably not that fragile, but it still needs to be handled with care.  The unit has a "backplane" board on the bottom, with circuit board modules inserted into connectors.  Some of these have large, heavy transformers on them.  There are guides on the sides, but the tops are retained by brittle plastic holders that somewhat resemble an old fashioned, non spring clothespin.  They are passed through a sheet metal cover/shield.

I purchased one from a seller that used a cardboard box, and I received it with the front panel switch broken.  I made a claim to the shipper, who returned it to the seller in the same inadequate box.  (despite my request NOT to do so.)  He received it back with a few more broken parts.

The one I have was shipped in a wooden crate with a lot of padding around it.  It arrived intact.  The seller told me that is the only way to get one shipped in the US without damage. 

[ManateeMafia]

I have worked on mine and it took a while to get it going. There is a board that contains several relays that had corroded contacts. There were also signs it was stored in a humid environment for some time. A lot of deoxit and IPA got it back in working order.

I recommend the wideband option if it is available. It can come in handy testing rf voltmeters. Also, the GPIB option may also be useful. Some of the digital boards were similar to the 8500 series multimeters. They may be helpful in the event of a problem in the future.

One of the models, like the 5102B, had a hard case surrounding it. I think it was for portable/military use.

These are good calibrators and should serve you well if it can be shipped with care. There are very few affordable multifunction calibrators available that can source voltage and current for most handheld dmm ranges. The Datron/Wavetek calibrators have become difficult to buy and many seem to have bad displays.

[KJDS]

They are great when working, but are big, and very heavy and really need shipping with either a lot of polystyrene round them or in a custom packing crate.

I really should repair the pile that I have, just need to summon up the energy to pick them up and move them to the bench.

[TopLoser]

I got so fed up moving the one I had about that I gave it away. Bloody great heavy thing only good for 4.5 digit meters.

[Lightages]

I seem to always miss your deals for things I need 

Weight and size do not matter for this ting. The prices are generally right for what I need it for. I don't intend to calibrate anything other than handheld meters so it seems to be the perfect choice for me. If I need higher calibration accuracy, I have finally found a company in Santiago that seems to be competent to do these things to. I am waiting for a quote from them for calibrating handheld meters and also to calibrate the 5100B as it would need yearly calibrating too. If the cos of calibrating the 5100 is ore than calibrating 10 handhelds, then there is no point for me to have the 5100 as I doubt I will need to calibrate ore than that per year for a long time.

[ManateeMafia]

I bought a cart for mine from Harbor Freight. It supports the 5100B and 5220A plus several other odds and ends. It is easier wheeling it around than picking it up.

Of course, my floor space is even more limited because of the cart.

[dom0]

bymm/Michalzik almost gave up on repairing his (other) 5100B, that ought to mean something... especially since he has had two units and even did extensive comparative measurements...

http://www.bymm.de/documents/08/Reparaturbericht_Fluke5101b_V2_22.pdf (German, 122 pages)
http://www.bymm.de/documents/09/A17_Calibration_Procedure_V1_9.pdf (English)

[TopLoser]

I seem to always miss your deals for things I need 

You didn't miss anything, I would never have shipped it anywhere. I gave it away free to a guy when he bought a Fluke 5700/5725 set from me. Now they were PROPER sexy bits of kit!

[Lightages]

OK, it seems the low price on the fully refurbished and NIST traceable calibration is for a reason. It is not easy to repair, and maybe not going to last a long time. If the calibration procedure is to expensive too, well I will just send meters out for calibration.

[Lightages]

I seem to always miss your deals for things I need 

You didn't miss anything, I would never have shipped it anywhere. I gave it away free to a guy when he bought a Fluke 5700/5725 set from me. Now they were PROPER sexy bits of kit!

Now those I wish had the spare pocket change for

[TopLoser]

I seem to always miss your deals for things I need 

You didn't miss anything, I would never have shipped it anywhere. I gave it away free to a guy when he bought a Fluke 5700/5725 set from me. Now they were PROPER sexy bits of kit!

Now those I wish had the spare pocket change for

You don't want to be standing up when you find out how much that pair costs to get calibrated...