meggers

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ultramegabob

ultramegabob

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I have been borrowing a friends spare megger for a while, I dont like to borrow things long term, so I would like to find a good reasonable priced megger, how much should I expect to pay to get a decent one? amprobe has one for around a hundred bucks, and I have seen differnt brands that go into small fortunes. any input would be appreciated.
 
the fluke 1507 is a very high quality insulation tester. you will be happy with it. i own that one and the mj159 hand crank. the hand crank was 1000 dollars and teh 1507 was around 400. both are good instruments
 
electricalperson said:
the fluke 1507 is a very high quality insulation tester. you will be happy with it. i own that one and the mj159 hand crank. the hand crank was 1000 dollars and teh 1507 was around 400. both are good instruments
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what makes one a high quality instument? what do you look for? hand crank vs. battery?
 
i like using the hand crank for personal reasons. you can feel the resistance when you turn the crank. good for when batteries are dead. the fluke tester has a range of 10Gohms, ohm meter, voltage tester and automatic PI/DAR test. pretty awesome insulation tester. hand crank is hard to use when you want to do a PI test since you need to crank it for 10 minutes while the fluke will do it for you automatically and automatically do the math at the end
 
I'm backing electricalperson 200% on his response. Flukes 1507 is a GREAT megger, and a very useful, very well rounded megger. It has PI/DAR measurement as well as a low-ohms bond measurement function. It has a compare function that is a custom set up for go/no go measurement readings if you are into PM programs. Not anywhere near a hundred bucks, but a d*mn good PM tool. With the meggering function from 50V on up to 1000V with PI/DAR, I couldn't think of a better possible tester.

On the question of meggers, it's all about what you want the tester to perform, and the functions you will use hand to hand. Batteries are a concern with an electronic megger, but if you know enough to keep extra batteries on hand, than you have a priceless tool. Hand cranks became a positive opinion for that reason in itself.

Check out the 1507. If you are a more well rounded one tester carrying kind of fella, check out the 1587 for drive work as well.

EDIT: Spelling
 
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zog said:
What do you need it for?
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just another troubleshooting tool, I had to borrow my friends meggar again to troubleshoot a circuit that was tripping a breaker, but couldnt find a short with my multimeter. I dont like borrowing tools, need to buy my own....
 
ultramegabob said:
just another troubleshooting tool, I had to borrow my friends meggar again to troubleshoot a circuit that was tripping a breaker, but couldnt find a short with my multimeter. I dont like borrowing tools, need to buy my own....
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fluke 1507 or mj159 would be best for you :D fluke 1507 is cheaper than mj159 and its perfect for anyone
 
Like zog I also own a multitude of meggers, depending on what I am doing.

I own a crank megger for that time when AC is not available and my batteries died. For the average guy who wants a go no go tester. I would go with a battery operated megger for my primary megger.
 
ultramegabob said:
just another troubleshooting tool, I had to borrow my friends meggar again to troubleshoot a circuit that was tripping a breaker, but couldnt find a short with my multimeter. I dont like borrowing tools, need to buy my own....
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Troubleshooting what? Transformers? Motors? Cables? Breakers? What voltages? How many a day?
 
zog said:
Troubleshooting what? Transformers? Motors? Cables? Breakers? What voltages? How many a day?
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thats hard to answer, I do mostly commercial work, resturaunts, churches, and nursing homes, some residential and light commercial. I dont necessarily know what I will be doing day to day.
 
ultramegabob said:
I have been borrowing a friends spare megger for a while, I dont like to borrow things long term, so I would like to find a good reasonable priced megger, how much should I expect to pay to get a decent one? amprobe has one for around a hundred bucks, and I have seen differnt brands that go into small fortunes. any input would be appreciated.
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I just bought a wee megger (500 Volts) from the UK through ebay. It only cost $10. However the postage will kill you. If you know someone or have a friend in the UK then have the item mailed to them, and then find some way for the to get it to you without costing you an arm and a leg. I am from the UK a long time ago. There are lots of inexpensive meggers for sale. Or try the Knowledge forum auction. Good luck

cadishead
 
ultramegabob said:
thats hard to answer, I do mostly commercial work, resturaunts, churches, and nursing homes, some residential and light commercial. I dont necessarily know what I will be doing day to day.
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I ment to say light industrial....:grin:
 
ultramegabob said:
thats hard to answer, I do mostly commercial work, resturaunts, churches, and nursing homes, some residential and light commercial. I dont necessarily know what I will be doing day to day.
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Cant help you much then, I guess buy a cheap 1000V (I assume you only work on 600V and less) digital handheld until you determine you need something else.

If you do a ton of cables or breakers you will want some data storage and if you do real breaker testing you will want some report software compatibility. If you do motors or transformers you will want DAR/PI modes.

battery powered dont hold up too long for transformers, you will need a line powered one for that.

Of course if you do any MV equipment you will need a 5 or 10kV model with several other features to consider.
 
I think im just going to buy a low end model from a good manufacture, it will probley suit my needs, probley a battery operated analog model. I agree, I can always upgrade later when the need arises.... thanks to everyone for thier insight....:smile:
 
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