WTB US Bench top DMM - $250 budget

[trilerian]

So... Replace battery, which requires an expensive converter, replace caps if they are cracked.  The battery will probably have to wait, not sure when I can get a converter to backup the ram.  But I do have a soldering iron I can power off a battery so grounding won't be an issue.

[bdunham7]

So... Replace battery, which requires an expensive converter, replace caps if they are cracked.

Many of the batteries have already been replaced once, so I wouldn't assume you need a new one anytime soon without checking.  The capacitors are simple, but also much less likely to explode here in 120V-land.  The Prologix converters are very pricey, as you've noticed, and the National Instruments GPIB to USB adapters, which are mostly counterfeit these days, don't work with HKJ's handy Test Controller software.  There are other options, like Arduino-based converters, but I haven't pursued this myself.  You might want to, since the logging, graphing and math features of Test Controller are pretty nice.

[EEVblog]

I did!

Sheesh!  You're supposed to read about and stalk eBay deals for months on end, not snap at them like a hungry crocodile! 

Kids these days 

[trilerian]

I did!

Sheesh!  You're supposed to read about and stalk eBay deals for months on end, not snap at them like a hungry crocodile! 

Kids these days 

Well. I figured I would put in an offer and if they accepted, that would be fine. I offered $125, and someone said it was a decent deal for $160.

[bdunham7]

Well. I figured I would put in an offer and if they accepted, that would be fine. I offered $125, and someone said it was a decent deal for $160.

Your deal is fine if the unit works OK.  Some of us old goats (and not-so-old as well) remember picking this stuff up for next to nothing and that's just not reality anymore.  But if you are patient and keep an eye on eBay, you'll eventually see sellers either list something buy-it-now well under market price or put a less popular item out on bids with a misspelled description.  These items get snapped up, so you just have to be the first to spot them.  Look through the sold items to see what the lowest price something has sold for and you'll be surprised.

[trilerian]

Well, it came in today.  I will have to replace the caps.  The battery reads 3.02v on my hand held meter.  No leads, which I wasn't expecting any, so I will have to buy some.  I am using a cheap set that came with a crappy hand held for now. I had to cut the boots off the ends so they would connect.  I will need to get something for a reference though.  I look into it.

Thanks again!

[EEVblog]

Well, it came in today.  I will have to replace the caps.  The battery reads 3.02v on my hand held meter.  No leads, which I wasn't expecting any, so I will have to buy some.  I am using a cheap set that came with a crappy hand held for now. I had to cut the boots off the ends so they would connect.  I will need to get something for a reference though.  I look into it.

No need for a reference if you have another meter to compare with, that will get you in the ballpark. Usually these things are either bang-on in within spec or they are faulty.

[mwb1100]

My question is how do I get Dave to be my personal shopper?