Low Current DC Clamp Meter

[mcinque]

I suggest PICO TA018, it's relatively cheap (€ 150) and has a good sensitivity and a better rejection noise than its previous version. I acquired it recently, and I'm very satisfied.

100mV/A on 20A range, so 10mV/100mA with 10mA minimum sensitivity (but it's readable even with 5mA), should fit your needs
10mV/A on 60A range

http://www.picoauto.com/current-clamp-small.html

[0xdeadbeef]

I suggest PICO TA018, it's relatively cheap (€ 150) and has a good sensitivity and a better rejection noise than its previous version. I acquired it recently, and I'm very satisfied.

Looks like a rebranded CA-60 which is sold under different brand names.
Also the Hantek CC-65 seems to be a very close relative.

[mcinque]

Probably, until your post I was convinced that Pico doesn't do rebranding  Is this a known behavior of Pico? Or who's rebranding who? (Or who's copying who?)

EDIT: Found that TECPEL seems to offer his UNI-T UT81 (http://www.tecpel.com/Oscilloscope-multimeter-OS-81B.html) or it's UNI-T that rebrands TECPEL?
Also Tenma offers a rebranded UT81, don't kow if TECPEL or UNI-T. The rebranding is a very disappointing thing.

[0xdeadbeef]

Yeah, it's all a big mess. I also noticed that this Tecpel DCM-043 looks exactly like the "GTC CM100" mentioned earlier in this thread.
I sometimes wonder if at least all these Chinese and Taiwanese companies know who copies from whom. But honestly I tend to think they lost the overview as well.

[Rupunzell]

K100 & K110 might use a flux gate as a measurement device. Both have a percent of reading and + or -  150 to 200 uA ( 1mA/mV or 1mA/10mV) added tot he reading making both not very accurate at the 1mA range. With that much error, both would be more of an indicator of current than accurate measurement.

Measurement error is further increased by the accuracy of the instrument used to make mV measurements. Accurate measurement of millivolts is no easy task for any volt meter. Then there is stability and drift to deal with.

K100
http://www.aemc.com/products/pdf/1200.67.pdf
K110
http://www.aemc.com/products/pdf/2111.73.pdf

Beyond this, noted at the bottom of their spec sheet is absence of magnetic fields. This likely means the flux gate sensor is not well shielded and subject to stray field pick up and there appears to be no compensation for the Earth's magnetic field.

Sensing device type alone does not give an inherent measurement advantage unless the design, implementation, construction has the required details to make it a truly useful instrument.


Bernice

AEMC K100 provides 1mV/mA output signal and can measure from 100uA to 4.5A DC.

http://www.testequipmentdepot.com/AEMC/accessories/current-measurement-probes/ac-dc-microprobes/k100.htm

BTW, K100 uses flux gate magnetometer technology, just like HP 428B.

http://www.aemc.com/products/html/view.asp?id=204&dbname=products
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[Mike Warren]

The Altronics meter arrived today. It's definitely identical to the CEM DT-337 that MJLorton reviewed.

I'm not impressed with it; build quality and UI quirks, but I think it will do what I want.

Looking inside, it seems they forgot that CAT III 600V meters are supposed to have some sort of input protection.

[PTR_1275]

That's a shame.

I don't think I've ever used my clamp meters for voltage readings before. I just checked my der ee and finest clamps and both are rated cat 2 600v. I wouldn't trust the der ee at 600v but I've not looked inside at input protection.

How does it go with current accuracy / resolution?

[Mike Warren]

I don't think I've ever used my clamp meters for voltage readings before.

I won't be using this one for anything other than DC current, so it doesn't matter to me. I just opened it up because I thought some people here might be interested.

How does it go with current accuracy / resolution?

Much like the results Martin gets. It's finicky to get right. The zero button is a latch. That just doesn't make sense. You have to tun it off and back on before each reading.

As well as testing it on the bench, I tried it on 9 cars we have here. A couple of them have battery cables that are too thick for the clamp. I found the best accuracy was obtained by holding the meter right next to the cable I wanted to measure, zeroing the meter, and then clamping it on, keeping the angle the same as it was while zeroing it.

[retiredcaps]

Looking inside, it seems they forgot that CAT III 600V meters are supposed to have some sort of input protection.

Thanks for sharing pics of the insides.  Martin never showed the insides in his video.

The green component by the flat flex connector might be a MOV (varistor)?  That yellow component is a PTC and labelled as such.