Probe recommendations for young people

[tim.savage]

My daughter (4) is getting more interested in the various tools on my electronics workbench, in particular, she loves getting hold of my Multimeter and using the continuity function to find things that conduct. While I encourage her curiosity, I don't want that curiosity to extending to sticking the probes into a mains socket.

Can anybody recommend probes (quality doesn't matter) that have particularly fat tips to prevent such an occurrence (I'm in Australia so this is for an AU/NZ standard socket)?

[tautech]

My daughter (4) is getting more interested in the various tools on my electronics workbench, in particular, she loves getting hold of my Multimeter and using the continuity function to find things that conduct. While I encourage her curiosity, I don't want that curiosity to extending to sticking the probes into a mains socket.

Can anybody recommend probes (quality doesn't matter) that have particularly fat tips to prevent such an occurrence (I'm in Australia so this is for an AU/NZ standard socket)?

Welcome to the forum.

Some DMM probes do come with little rubber or nylon slip on sheaths so only the tip is exposed and you won't get them into our mains sockets. If you can't immediately find such probes you can build up the probe pin diameter just with layers of heat-shrink. The last layer should go up the handle a little to stop them from falling off. A tiny dab of rubber modeling glue could be added to be double sure.
Just the very point exposed is a good idea for most users to help prevent accidental shorts against another component or the DUT chassis.
Keep that kid safe ! 

[Muttley Snickers]

Another option would be to get a set of the Brymen silicone test leads which are the same ones supplied with both the EEVblog BM235 and 121GW meters, they come with 4mm banana screw on tips which if fitted cannot be inserted into a GPO, a valued member here Franky from 99centhobbies sells them.

99centhobbies
https://www.ebay.com/str/99centHobbies/

[tim.savage]

Thanks for the responses, I picked up some leads from Jaycar with covers, I'll use some heat shrink to fix them on that should do the trick.

Good to know about the Brymen leads, I have one of the EEVBlog meters and the leads are much nicer than those that came with my other meters, might get some of those for myself!

Cheers

[pigrew]

I'd provide banana to banana or banana to mini-grabber cables, they are not sharp at all. Maybe fashion together something like a maglock to prevent strain on the DMM ports?

[David Hess]

Buy a set of test leads, cut the probes off, and replace them with alligator clips.  I usually replace the negative probe with an alligator clip anyway.