I got a b&k bench, actually a tripplet meter. It has all the bells and whistles, but I got to fix one of the 30 some push buttons. Got a Heath vtvm. My first vtvm, an EICO. Got two of the famous radio shack range doublers, analog. An early micronta digital meter, with manual range. Sometimes you need manual range. I got a triplet analog workhorse. I got a micronta pen. Got off brand LC meter, and others. Not sure, but I think I may have a RCA senior voltohmest. My heavy duty prize is an amprobe analog clamp meter with voltage jacks, found inside a piece of equipment I was working on.
Cheaper are easier to replace, but if your in the field, you need reliability.
I did one of those things once where you go to a place to have a discussion group, and you get paid for participating. Easy money. It was all about discussing multimeters. Big table in room with chairs around, some moderator, and a glass window with secret people behind. I was not suppose to tell, but it's been some time, it was fluke behind the window. I think I was the only electronic technician. They were wanting to know what technicians wanted and how they used the meters. I think the biggest point was meters and leads. Wanted more automatic setups.
How many meter have I used and or bought? Many. Sure I really like the one at work, fluke $300-400. Have a couple of the cheap HF meters. Sometimes I prefer to use an analog meter, especially measuring over 1 kv. Sometimes a vtvm to measure 1 g ohm. My favorite toy right now is a HF meter, about $40. I think it has rpm and or frequency measurement. Also a light meter. Also built in temperature and humidity. Also built in sound meter. The lead connectors light up to indicate proper jacks. It also tells when to take a coffee break!!!!
Not surprising. Flukes are pretty much bullet proof.
The first company I worked for, a small one, had about a dozen multimeters, all different brands. They were used by everyone from assemblers to engineers, from a big double tool box. They were heavily used/abused. B*Ks, Simpsons, etc. Most of the meters were iffy with bad connectors. Workbench drawers were littered with dead meters of many brands, from expensive to cheap. None were Flukes.
The next company was a major Silicon Valley player. Our division alone musta had about 70 meters, all Flukes, which I eventually became responsible for, making sure everyone had a good one with good leads and they were all current in their calibration. Out of all those Flukes, also heavily used/abused, only one failed in the 4 yrs I was there. I had one manual button Fluke that was so old, the frosting on the display had wore out and you could see all the traces in the LC display, which was still working and perfectly readable. Never once encountered iffy connector sockets on a Fluke.
My own meter is a Fluke 8020B, no longer made, which I picked up used at a pawn shop. Works perfectly.
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No doubt, I'll pass it on to my grandkids.
BTW, Fluke did go pretty much all auto-ranging. I don't think they even make a manual button model, anymore. I know Fluke is pretty expensive, most of their stuff outta my price range, but you can get a used one on ebay fer under $100 and you'll have a meter for life.
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