Used fluke 87v tests - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / testgear

author: nemo000111
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2013, 02:49:50 am
content: Hi all,I just picked up a used 87v ($200 us) with case, temp probe, test leads, and alligator clips and wanted to know what tests you would recommend to see how well it's performing and if there are any issues with it. Probing ohms on the amps connector gives me 0.5 ohms and the uA connector gives me 1.001 kOhms. It is a rev 10 board, however the serial number is higher than the ones with the gsm issue and it has the 3.00 firmware. Thanks for the help.

author: Lightages
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: June 07, 2013, 03:02:46 am
content: Without any kind of real references, voltage, resistance, etc, you have no way of checking it. Find someone who has a recently purchased new multimeter of high quality and ask them to help you compare different measurements to see if you are within the same ballpark.Open the meter up and check for obvious damage or repairs.If there is nothing wrong with these "tests" then the meter is most likely OK.

author: mzacharias
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2013, 11:27:44 am
content: I would suggest that if your 87V is in good physical condition and "appears" to work correctly with basic measurements - a 1.5 volt battery, a 1 kOhm resistor, etc there is a VERY great chance that it is exactly what virtually all 87V's are - accurate well beyond specs and reliable to the point of simply not having to worry about it.Beyond this, yes you would need something to compare to, some sort of voltage and/or current reference, but also time will build confidence. I would concur in recommending a visual inspection of the insides to confirm that nobody has "repaired" or modified in any unsafe manner.The resistance readings you gave for the current jacks are normal. In addition to the 1 kOhm reading of the microamp range, if I recall correctly switching to milliamp function, that jack will now measure 1 ohm.

author: SLJ
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2013, 12:51:13 pm
content: I have enough meters for them to all keep tabs on each other but I finally broke down and purchased a DMMCheck plus this week to play with.http://www.voltagestandard.com/DMMCheck_Plus.htmlShould be here in a couple of days.I'll let you know what I think of it when it arrives.If you have a known voltage source and a couple of precision resistors you should be able to quickly check the VDC/resistance/current ranges using ohms law.

author: SLJ
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2013, 07:38:41 pm
content: Update - the DMMCheck plus came in today. Ordered it Tuesday night and it shipped the next day. It works great. Nice to have a affordable standard to check the accuracy of my DMMs and analog meters.Here's the data sheet from it:

author: kfitch42
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 07, 2013, 07:48:26 pm
content: The DMM Check seems like a really good deal given the level of manual effort that clearly goes into each one.The duty cycle measured in Hz is a nice touch

author: cthree
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: June 11, 2013, 02:19:47 am
content: Check for blown fuses.