Circuit Tracers:Best bang for my buck.

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ElectricBeth

Member
Location
Wisconsin
I'm in the market for a Circuit Tracer. I've been doing a little research online, lots to choose from. The more functions the better; circuit breaker locator, open or short locator, etc. As well as working on non energized circuits. It seems like every panel I work on is not labeled or I'm tracing unknown circuits in crawl spaces and attics. I'm looking at Triplett's 3388 HotWire Fox & Hound , but all the reviews seem to be from non professionals. (That's why I came to the forum.)


What's the best bang for my buck?
 

Gregg Harris

Senior Member
Location
Virginia
Occupation
Electrical,HVAC, Technical Trainer
I'm in the market for a Circuit Tracer. I've been doing a little research online, lots to choose from. The more functions the better; circuit breaker locator, open or short locator, etc. As well as working on non energized circuits. It seems like every panel I work on is not labeled or I'm tracing unknown circuits in crawl spaces and attics. I'm looking at Triplett's 3388 HotWire Fox & Hound , but all the reviews seem to be from non professionals. (That's why I came to the forum.)


What's the best bang for my buck?

Check out Amprobe I have several of them that work great.
 

cadpoint

Senior Member
Location
Durham, NC
Stop messing around and get the
Tasco Circuit Mapper System CMT42S Circuit and Wire Tracer .

This come in 24 or 48 count, this digitially displays digitial circuit # on the plug while the other end is singing.

"
When working with non-energized circuits, make sure all power is turned-off in the panel you are working in"

Now it will not read through walls like some products most if faulting should be DVM, Wiggied or Megged.


But my second choice is (and I do own both) the Sperry SC61200 and the SC61200AS (which is a Pig-tail)
socket tester.

In tracing a live circuit with Sperry if one uses a radio it causes interference on each plug on that branch...
But it is limited to 115V -15A it is UL.
 

hurk27

Senior Member
My personal tracer is a mix of a few items that I use together to make tracing efficient, the main stay is the Greenlee 2007 kit with the live or dead circuit transmitter 0-600 volts, and the hand held receiver, with this I also use a common telephone/network toner receiver with the 60hz filter that will also hear the 2007 transmitter signal when locating a circuit I have no idea where it might run as it can hear the beeping from far off, and it will get louder as I get closer to it.

But at work we have both the Ideal 61-958 and 61-959 kits, I like the buttons on the 958 receiver better but the 959 has replaced the 958, I seen the 61-958 kit still around for about $1200.00 and the 61-959 kit for just a little more, the kit also has two types of transmitters (both do live 0-600 volts) besides the direct connection it has an inductive clamp on that makes it nice if you don't want to power down the circuit while making the connection,
you can also get the kit without the inductive clamp and battery pack, which we rarely use anyway at work, the 61-956 or 61-954 (led read out) both are a little lower in cost, but both do the same thing the receiver and direct connect transmitter in the 61-958 kit does and are both very good at finding where the wires run.

This is an area of tools where you get what you pay for, and while they are expensive paying for the convenience of being able to find the correct breaker on a live circuit is a great asset when your working in an office full of desk top computers, and turning off the incorrect breaker when someone is almost done inputting a whole bunch of data into their program leaves you feeling that you are about to be sent to the lions den for cat food:eek:

Almost all these transmitters used in these circuit tracers also modulate an audio signal into the tracing signal that a phone toner receiver with a 60hz filter will also pickup, so combining the two can also make finding and following the conductors a little easier, also if you do get the 61-958/959 kit then the inductive clamp on can also be used to follow conduit in the wall to some extent, we use it at work to find a conduit run when there are many runs together, even though they will have a few electrical connections between them from the mounting the signal strength is higher on the one with the transmitter on it.

I have got so used to using tracers so much that they have become like an extension of my body, its like now I can see/hear where the electrons flow and follow them, but they are addicting as I didn't bring mine to a job one time and I felt so handy capped that I had to go home and get it.
 
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ActionDave

Chief Moderator
Staff member
Location
Durango, CO, 10 h 20 min from the winged horses.
Occupation
Licensed Electrician
Check out Amprobe I have several of them that work great.
:thumbsup: I am a big fan of the Amprobe Pasar. I have an old one and would not trade it for anything else. One does need to read the instructions and practice with it upon bringing it out of the box for the first time, but once over the learning curve nothing beats it.
 

Fulthrotl

~Autocorrect is My Worst Enema.~
:thumbsup: I am a big fan of the Amprobe Pasar. I have an old one and would not trade it for anything else. One does need to read the instructions and practice with it upon bringing it out of the box for the first time, but once over the learning curve nothing beats it.

yep... i bought the first one of these 20 years ago, and when it got stolen, i bought another.
when i first bought mine, it was the pasar, and a fellow by the name of austin wright in
colorado had developed it... it was a small enough company that if you called them up,
you had a fair chance of getting him on the phone, as i did.

it's a good enough design that it hasn't been changed since 1992.

they were about $900 all those years, then fluke ate amprobe, and magically, they are now $1,200.
fluke sucks that way.

i also have the ideal that hurk was talking about, with the induction clamp, and it'll do some stuff
that the amprobe won't, and vice versa.

between those two, i can't see needing anything else... but the two will set you back $2,500. :weeping:

if i had to replace them, i'd get them both again, but i'd get the amprobe first...

amprobe pasar ct-326b, or c....... the b can be found used on ebay.....

http://www.amprobe.com/Amprobe/usen...-Locators/Wire-Tracers/CT-326-C.htm?PID=78049

the only one on ebay at the moment is new, at 1,326.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Amprobe-CT-...643?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item27dcbbc893


ideal 61-959

http://www.idealindustries.com/prod...rcuit_analyzers/suretrace_circuit_tracers.jsp
 
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kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
This is an area of tools where you get what you pay for, and while they are expensive paying for the convenience of being able to find the correct breaker on a live circuit is a great asset when your working in an office full of desk top computers, and turning off the incorrect breaker when someone is almost done inputting a whole bunch of data into their program leaves you feeling that you are about to be sent to the lions den for cat food:eek:

I once unknowingly turned off a guys internet gateway/router/etc. leaving him isolated from the rest of the world, and he gave me a piece of his mind, told me how much money he may be losing during that down time - he was into investments. I just listened to him but gave no reply, I knew the guy most of my life and personally do not like him anyway, he is very arrogant and self centered, but I did figure if his computer and internet connection are that critical to his operation that he is stupid not to have a standby source or even standby computer and internet connections if the loss is as bad as as he made it sound, I still feel his loss was not as bad as he made it appear and his self righteousness had kicked in at that moment:roll:
 

StarCat

Industrial Engineering Tech
Location
Moab, UT USA
Occupation
Imdustrial Engineering Technician - HVACR Electrical and Mechanical Systems
Lower End types

Lower End types

Extech CB-10 is to be avoided. This one will give a tone through shared neutral when the source breaker is OFF. Poorly engineered.
I quickly returned that one for a refund and spoke to a Tech Support Engineer who was just not " getting it."

Amprobe ECB50A
Unimpressive and also having some design flaws. No indicator light on the wall transmitter. Weak and poorly responsive.
Live and dead line tracer.

I have an old " Multi Systems " " Breaker Finder " Fantastic for light duty commercial work although they are no longer made.
Good for 277V to ground which you really need in any case. They can sometimes be found on Ebay.

The higher end units with inductive capability sound like a good way to go.

Kwired, the router guy sounds like many I have run into.
You are correct, if he was so high end special, where was his UPS that day???


All the best

SC
 
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