AIMOmeter MS8217 multi-meter: A Fluke 17B Clone? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: electronupdate
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 30, 2015, 01:50:10 pm
content: Recently spotted on amazon.com. The external case is identical to a Fluke 17B (so identical I wonder if someone got hold of the actual Fluke molds?).... however the insides of the meter are quite different. The 10 Amp range circuit, in particular looks very wrong with respect to fusing.....Review video here:

author: sync
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 30, 2015, 02:20:52 pm
content: Quote from: electronupdate on May 30, 2015, 01:50:10 pmIt has a fuse but it's unfused!That means the manufacture never tested it or ignored the failed test. What a POS!

author: Lightages
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 01:01:51 am
content: Wow!Thanks for buying that piece of junk so others can see why markings can't be trusted unless you can verify them with third party testing. I can see why Europe has made the IEC standards mandatory. As far as I understand, there are no regulations for this yet in the USA.I bet Fluke will be going after sales of this thing, or at least they should.

author: retiredcaps
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 01:30:07 am
content: @electronupdate1) Can you post some high resolution pictures of the MS8217 pcb please?2) I'm sure if you complained, Amazon would gladly refund your money for this meter. They usually have a very generous return policy for items that are not up to customer's satisfaction.3) If you haven't see this thread already on the Aimometer, go tohttps://www.eevblog.com/forum/chat/blatant-copying-of-fluke/

author: Vgkid
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 01:35:33 am
content: Wow, thanks for the review. A truely scary meter.

author: Muxr
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 01:44:40 am
content: Unbelievable audacity. First to pretty much copy the Fluke mold identically and then to sell such a heap of garbage on Amazon. Thanks for the review.

author: ModemHead
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 02:59:18 am
content: Yes, thanks for that teardown and review. I believe that's the closest thing I've ever seen to an outright Fluke clone. Really curious where the top end of that fuse goes. What were they thinking?

author: electronupdate
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 05:37:29 am
content: Quote from: retiredcaps on May 31, 2015, 01:30:07 amPhotos here:Items to note:On the photo were a light is shined through the board one can see how close the trace to the "voltage" input runs next to the ground plane. That seems like a creepage violation?The back of the meter suggests replacing the fuse with a "500 mA" version, but the front of the meter clearly says "400 mA"And as previously noted, the 10A fuse does not appear to do anything as it's in the wrong place in the circuit.....

author: bitwelder
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 06:46:16 am
content: Can you post also a photo of the rotary switch? Looking at the video it seemed like another faulty component.BTW: I wonder if the useless 10A fuse is an AIMO 'original design', or we might find it also in other cheap brands.

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 07:03:44 am
content: 10A fuse seems to be there only to connect the current shunt on the 10A range to the voltage sense on the A range. If that 10A fuse blows it means the meter has just been hit by lightning.

author: Jay_Diddy_B
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 01:43:20 pm
content: Hi,In addition to the 10A fuse being in the wrong place. There is very little creepage distance. The full input can appear across the gaps that I have circled in red.If they had spent as much time copying the inside as they did copying the outside, they would have had a much better (safer) meter.Regards,Jay_Diddy_B

author: electronupdate
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 01:44:22 pm
content: Quote from: bitwelder on May 31, 2015, 06:46:16 amSwitch photo below. Note how it's held in place by only one screw (the other posts are locating pins). The combination of a single screw which is slightly stripped out and the springs being slightly too stiff is combining to push some of the contacts away.This is becoming a study on easily avoided design errors... sadly most of them could have been avoided without adding much, if any cost.

author: Jay_Diddy_B
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 02:05:07 pm
content: Hi,From the video, it looks like Fluke also used a single screw in the same location:Regards,Jay_Diddy_B

author: retiredcaps
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 10:33:47 pm
content: Quote from: Jay_Diddy_B on May 31, 2015, 01:43:20 pmWith not too much effort, the people at AMIOmeter could have done a simple search for "Fluke 17B schematic" and would have found a leaked copy of it.They could have just removed all the input protection, substituted cheap components for all the expensive ones and would have been done.

author: retiredcaps
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 31, 2015, 11:07:03 pm
content: Quote from: electronupdate on May 31, 2015, 01:44:22 pmThe switch looks identical, not surprisingly, to the Fluke 17B teardown video that Dave did.While answering another Fluke 17B question, I noticed that the Fluke 17B manual was dated October 2002. On Fluke's website, the 17B is listed as discontinued (due to the introduction of the 17B+). If correct and given it is a 13 yeard old design now, I wonder if one of the following scenarios is true?1) To get some money on their discontinued Fluke 17B leftover molds, they sold off the molds to somone for $$ with the provision the rubber is not yellow.2) They were destined to be destroyed, but someone diverted the truck to another factory?PS. Since Martin Lorton was just at Fluke HQ, I alerted Martin to this thread to see if Fluke HQ has any feedback?

author: pascal_sweden
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 03:43:57 pm
content: Quote from: retiredcaps on May 31, 2015, 10:33:47 pmOr they could have made 100% identical copy. Even with the original components from Fluke the sales price would be much lower, as they can keep the profit margins lower. There is no need for them to amortize the R&D costs when they copy paste the multimeter

author: saturation
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 01, 2015, 09:16:24 pm
content: Great job. After all the work they did copying the meter, the amp fuse error is so plebian, yet so critical is makes you wonder what added oversights are on in that design. Thanks for taking the time to buy it and tear it down. It would be good to return or discard it as handing it down may be a moral dilemma. I wonder what's in the fuses?

author: rsjsouza
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 02, 2015, 03:13:37 am
content: I really think that you guys are fussing too much about the fuse placement. The way I see it is that AIMO engineers made only one mistake: a typo. Where it reads 10A it should read 100A. The other 10A ceramic fuse that leads to the input of the meter is intended to protect against overcurrent caused by overvoltage - something around 100MV (10A passing through 10M ohms of input impedance).All in all, a brilliant design. O0

author: Hydrawerk
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: June 30, 2015, 03:34:45 pm
content: What the fuck was that pcb design.