Author Topic: Fluke 8846A repair attempt  (Read 1381 times)

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Offline giosifTopic starter

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Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« on: June 28, 2023, 09:30:37 pm »
Hi all,

I recently scored a Fluke 8846A off the bay, obviously, in non-working condition.
Upon opening it up, I was greeted with several "beautiful landscapes", the most extensive one being shown in the photo attached.  ;D
I would like to bring this meter back to some functioning state, so I've started looking for the components which are most obviously damaged.
Some of them are burnt/damaged beyond recognition, or have simply been vaporized.
But, with the help from TiN's very nice high-res photos from one of his repairs, I was able to build a list of components needing replacement (please see below).
Suffice to say I expect the list to grow as I'm progressing with the investigation, but it's a start.

I know this may be a tall order but, in case someone happens to have another unit opened up, I would appreciate it if they could check & confirm the identification of at least some of the components in the below list.
Also, if someone happens to have a spare Fluke 2464674 resistor network or even an entire board from a broken 8846A, I would be interested.

And here is the list (grouped per proximity of placement on the board):

CR16 - OnSemi BAV99L
R70 - 1kOhm
C67 - ?
U24 - Ti LF353M op-amp

VR4 - OnSemi MMBZ5230BLT1G

R194 - 200 Ohm

K2 - Panasonic/NAIS DS2E-SL2-DC5V relay

Z1 - Fluke 2464674 resistor network

Q25 - OnSemi/Fairchild MMBF4117
CR30 - OnSemi BAV99L
R103 - 100 Ohm

Q54 - OnSemi MMBT3904L
R582 - 100 Ohm

Thanks!
 

Offline TaylorD93

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #1 on: June 29, 2023, 11:43:51 am »
Have you reached out to Fluke themselves? they may be able to confirm some of the component values if youre not sure.

 

Offline giosifTopic starter

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #2 on: June 29, 2023, 05:13:54 pm »
I had not but, following your suggestion, I have contacted them.
I don't hold much hope, but it is worth a try.
Thanks for the idea!
 
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Offline giosifTopic starter

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #3 on: July 01, 2023, 01:31:33 pm »
Just to provide an update that I contacted Fluke support and I'm still waiting for them to respond.
 

Offline giosifTopic starter

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #4 on: July 01, 2023, 01:40:57 pm »
In the meantime, doing more troubleshooting, I determined the OnSemi NTP18N06L mosfet used for the -15V power rail has failed.
That specific mosfet model seems to be obsolete, so I am looking for an equivalent replacement.
And, so far, I came up with the following candidates:
-Diodes DMT6009LCT
-ST Micro STP80NF55-06
-Vishay IRLZ24

However, I am not that confident in my abilities to identify the main parameters when looking for substitutes for mosfets, so I would appreciate it if someone could validate the above list or suggest a more appropriate replacement.

Thanks!
 

Offline bdunham7

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #5 on: July 01, 2023, 06:52:35 pm »
Can you boot it up and take a photo of the front panel showing the system information (press INSTRUMENT SETUP, then SYSTEMS, then VERSIONS) ?  You'll want to get your information from someone with the same hardware version if possible, although many things may be the same.  If yours matches mine, I can pop the top and have a look.

I'd say that if there has been an input overload severe enough to propagate to other sections of the board, it might be pretty much unrepairable.  These are not easy beasts to fix in the first place and if the jolt was big enough to fry the input protection--which is fairly robust--and still pop those diode clamps, then there may be quite some mayhem elsewhere. 

If you can boot it up and get me that info, I'd also suggest removing the remains of R194 and cleaning the area with IPA and a Q-tip.  It looks like the other components just have some soot on them.  If Z1 is damaged, then I would think it is beyond economic repair.
A 3.5 digit 4.5 digit 5 digit 5.5 digit 6.5 digit 7.5 digit DMM is good enough for most people.
 

Offline giosifTopic starter

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #6 on: July 02, 2023, 10:04:37 pm »
Can you boot it up and take a photo of the front panel showing the system information (press INSTRUMENT SETUP, then SYSTEMS, then VERSIONS) ?  You'll want to get your information from someone with the same hardware version if possible, although many things may be the same.  If yours matches mine, I can pop the top and have a look.
Much appreciated. I will do that after restoring the -15V rail.

I'd say that if there has been an input overload severe enough to propagate to other sections of the board, it might be pretty much unrepairable.  These are not easy beasts to fix in the first place and if the jolt was big enough to fry the input protection--which is fairly robust--and still pop those diode clamps, then there may be quite some mayhem elsewhere. 
I am aware my chances of bringing this back to full functionality are slim, but I have to try.

If you can boot it up and get me that info, I'd also suggest removing the remains of R194 and cleaning the area with IPA and a Q-tip.  It looks like the other components just have some soot on them. 
I've done that already. This was a photo I took when opening the meter for the first time.

If Z1 is damaged, then I would think it is beyond economic repair.
Yeah. Z1 has definitely suffered some abuse (not just soot from R194). I'm not entirely sure if it's damaged beyond repair, but I put it on my list of parts to look for, in case everything else is restored and this is the last item to fix.
 

Offline bdunham7

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #7 on: July 02, 2023, 10:14:25 pm »
Much appreciated. I will do that after restoring the -15V rail.

Is that an inguard or outguard power rail?  If inguard, what does the meter do now when you turn it on?  Also, can you tell what input circuit R194 is on?  I'm just curious exactly how something like this happens--it certainly must have been sparkly.  But the MOVs aren't incinerated  It's too bad there's no schematic, as I'm sure you'll agree at this point.
A 3.5 digit 4.5 digit 5 digit 5.5 digit 6.5 digit 7.5 digit DMM is good enough for most people.
 

Offline giosifTopic starter

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #8 on: August 07, 2023, 08:38:51 pm »
Coming back to trying to repair this meter, I was wondering if anyone might have traced the input circuit, especially the area from the original picture above (i.e. R194, RT1, RT2, Z1), area which, in my case, has suffered significant damage.
The connection between R194 and RT1 seems flaky in my meter (I think they should be directly connected on one end) and I wonder what other connections might not work as intended/be reliable.
I did take a picture of the area after removing the burned PCB material (and before filling the area with solder mask), but that's not revealing all the traces - please see attached photo.
In hindsight, I should have taken a similar photo of the other side of the PCB as well.

Can you boot it up and take a photo of the front panel showing the system information (press INSTRUMENT SETUP, then SYSTEMS, then VERSIONS) ?  You'll want to get your information from someone with the same hardware version if possible, although many things may be the same.  If yours matches mine, I can pop the top and have a look.
Took a while, but here is the information:
OutG SW = 1.0.649.16
InG SW = ad000130
OutG HW = 7b27e634
InG HW = e4112603
 

Offline giosifTopic starter

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #9 on: August 16, 2023, 08:43:17 pm »
Just wondering if anyone might have the (reverse engineered) schematics for that area of the board already available.
Alternatively, if someone based in the UK has the same meter or just its PCB (doesn't have to be in working state, as long as the input area is in good condition), if they would be willing to lend it for me to trace that area of the board, that would be much appreciated (would share the results here, of course).
 

Offline Shonky

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #10 on: August 16, 2023, 09:53:12 pm »
Have you seen https://xdevs.com/fix/f8846a/ ? No schematics but some good photos and and internal schematic of Z1. Should be enough to validate if it's in the ballpark at least.
« Last Edit: August 16, 2023, 10:11:06 pm by Shonky »
 

Offline giosifTopic starter

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Re: Fluke 8846A repair attempt
« Reply #11 on: August 17, 2023, 06:45:17 pm »
Have you seen https://xdevs.com/fix/f8846a/ ? No schematics but some good photos and and internal schematic of Z1. Should be enough to validate if it's in the ballpark at least.

Yes, I've read that article and the related ones, but that doesn't provide that many details on the input circuit.
 


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