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Recommendation for a reasonably accuarate DC Amp Clamp
Stray Electron:
I just bought a car that contains a lot of electronics and it shuts down various systems at different time delays after it's been turned off and I need be able to be able watch the current and be sure that each system is properly shutting down. And if they're not shutting down then I need to be able trace the current flow. So I'm looking for a clamp on DC Amp meter that can read up to at least 30 amps but that can also read down to about 50 Milliamps with reasonable accuracy.
Does anyone have any recommendations?
There is one discussion on the forum about a cheap https://www.eevblog.com/forum/beginners/hantek-cc-65-vs-regular-amp-clamp/msg5196507/#msg5196507 Hantek Amp Clamp but it seems that it's not even close to accurate at low currents.
shabaz:
I have a Pico TA018, it's low-cost, and can resolve down to 10 mA (I hit the zeroize button occasionally, and then it does display at a scale of 1 mV per 10 mA, I've tested it down to 10 mA. That's in the 20A max range (there is also a 60A range with lower resolution).
The TA018 comes with a BNC connector but easily adapted onto a multimeter.
However it's Achille's heel is that it only supports up to about 9 mm diameter cables : (
For a car, maybe it's possible to DIY a thinner wire temporarily onto the car battery for a short length, but I've no idea how feasible/unfeasible that is, or what issues that may cause since some cars might not like the supply being disconnected.
Stray Electron:
I wasn't aware of that model but I will take a look. Thanks.
thm_w:
Same recommendation for the past 5+ years has been UT210e
https://lygte-info.dk/review/DMMUNI-TUT210E%20UK.html
DaneLaw:
--- Quote from: thm_w on May 24, 2024, 08:15:14 pm ---Same recommendation for the past 5+ years has been UT210e
https://lygte-info.dk/review/DMMUNI-TUT210E%20UK.html
--- End quote ---
I reckon it's a unit intended for use with oscilloscopes when its CC65 and Pico's cheaper clamp-variant that are highlighted.
Any tear down of the Pico TA018 ? is it a CC65 remolded rebadge' as the form-factor/circuit template looks very similar.
OP, what's your budget, and are you locked on AC/DC clamps for scopes?
I do personally have the CC65, and its accuracy is on call what I expected even down in the lower DC ranges, and works well with my Micsig scope' but you need to cycle the zero-button constantly, as its very sensitive and will drift.
If its just to measure current on car-leads between 30mA and 30A and you don't need to test inrush' then I would pursue a tool like thm_w recommends above. fx UT210E or the tons of AC/DC alternatives with 1mA DC tolerances, and you can even get them with Bluetooth nowadays, which could be handy on a car' so you can place the clamp in hard-to-reach area, - and run certain things from the car while monitoring the values on an app.....Owon got a AC/DC clamp unit with BT/app.. have no experience with that model..
Got the UT210E which performs quite well in lower mA values, it's more in the higher Amp-area I experience issues with my unit which tends to read a tad low (non-hacked) but in the lower span, it performs well...- some mA steptests are posted here https://tinyurl.com/3ykxb3eh but you need to reset DC-value a lot if you want accuracy down the last mA, as it tends to drift, with that kind of hall sensor sensitivity
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