Service manual Fluke 179

[andy_speedy]

Hello,
I have a Fluke 179 and looking for a service manual.
The meter is not working.
Battery has already been changed.
Can someone help me?

[retiredcaps]

You won't find any public service manuals with schematics, bill of materials, etc for any modern/current handheld Fluke multimeter.

If you want help, state what is not working and provide clear focused pictures of your meter pcb (both sides).

The more info you can give us, the more we can possibly help you.  "Not working" can mean a lot of things.

[andy_speedy]

Hello here still a few pictures from the circuit board.
It does not do anything, either a display or turn on the lighting.

[jeroen79]

It does not do anything, either a display or turn on the lighting.

Is that all it does not do?
Can you make the continuity checker beep? On my 179 the buttons also beep.
Do the resistance, continuity and diode modes produce current from the VoltOhm jack to the Common jack?
You could start by checking if the various ICs get power from the battery. You'll have to figure out which pins go to the battery though.
Can you measure some activity on the pads going to the LCD?
Could the zebrastrips going to the LCD or the LCD be faulty?

[andy_speedy]

The lcd is a whole new one.
From time to time you can see a display on the display.
If you turn it on, there is a very quiet buzzing from the buzzer.
No change when pressing the buttons.

Where on the IC can I measure what?

[jeroen79]

I don't know the pinout of the ICs. But you can follow the traces from the battery and see where they go.
Does the display show a better or more consistent picture if you gently press it a bit harder against the PCB and zebrastrips?
What about the other functionality I mentioned?

[ModemHead]

jeroen79 asks good questions.  In addition, measure the current draw from the battery.  If it is significantly over or under about a milliamp or two, it could indicate power problems.  Also, examine the board carefully with magnification.  I have often found small amounts of corrosion with accompanying copper erosion in those Fluke models, even if the inside is otherwise relatively clean.

[andy_speedy]

I measure at the battery about 52mA current consumption.

[jeroen79]

That is quite high, mine does 2-3mA, 5 when it is sourcing for diode/ohm/continuity.
Is anything feeling warmer than the rest?

[retiredcaps]

I measure at the battery about 52mA current consumption.

52mA is about 20x more than expected.  Sounds like something might be shorted to ground on the pcb or the MSP itself?

This version of the 179 uses the MSP430.  Datasheet is at

http://www.ti.com/lit/ds/symlink/msp430f448.pdf

Some questions.

Q1) Is this your meter or did you buy it from ebay "as is" with the intent of fixing it?
Q2) When did this meter last work?
Q3) Was this meter used to measure something very high voltage (say > 240V)?
Q4) Did you lend this out to a friend?
Q5) Did you buy this new from an authorized Fluke dealer?
Q6) Why do you have a "new" lcd?

[retiredcaps]

Is anything feeling warmer than the rest?

I have a dead meter which is drawing 80mA (normal should be less than 5mA) from a 9V battery and I never found anything getting warmer by touching the components so I don't know if the OP will have any better luck than I.  Maybe my fingers aren't sensitive enough?

[carl_lab]

If battery idle current is much over standard I'd look for a shorted electrolytic capacitor (tantal cap...).

I never found anything getting warmer by touching the components so I don't know if the OP will have any better luck than I.  Maybe my fingers aren't sensitive enough?

Thermal imager could help...

[merricke]

Fluke 179
Meter was dead, battery current 5 ma and higher at times
After trying to test this cap across the power line, battery current dropped to about 2 ma and the meter started working.
Any idea the value of this cap?

[retiredcaps]

Any idea the value of this cap?

There is no service manual for the 179.

However, the predecessor to the 179 is the 70 series III.

There is a service manual for the 77 iii at

https://dam-assets.fluke.com/s3fs-public/77iii___smeng0100.pdf

Perhaps the schematic may give you a clue as to what ballpark cap to use?  Obviously, the 77 III schematic won't be identical to a 179, but it might be similar enough that you can deduce the cap value?

BTW, there are many revisions of the 179 pcb.  The revision number will be around the upper LCD area if i recall correctly.

[merricke]

Thanks.  I don't see a direct cap across the battery but there is about 2 uf to common.  That sounds about right to me.
My pcb is 17X-3001 Rev 007
Thanks again