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I purchased a new multimeter as my old one wasn't working correctly. When I went to check the voltage on my 46, 6 volt battery. There was no change on the screen and the positive and negative leds on the multimeter got hot right away. There was also sparking when I touched the negative to ground it sparked. I don't think the multimeter is any good.

I would be taking it back, that doesnt sound right.
Tony

If the brand you bought is a quality brand I'd take it back. I bought a Harbor Freight multimeter a few years back and it was junk out of the package. It would cost more to drive to Wichita to take it back than it cost so in the trash it went.

Hi Keith,

I agree that there is something wrong with the meter.

Most reputable meters have some type of internal fuse protection. They have that feature to protect against mistakes like having the meter set to read resistance when you are trying to check battery voltage.

Thanks for the reply's. It is a Harbor Freight one. I have had another HF multimeter for 15 or 20 years and always worked correctly, but failed when trying to figure out what was going on with the battery on my 48. The new HF one is going back. I have another one being delivered tomorrow from Amazon.

That would happen if it was accidentally connected using the amp or milliamperes connector instead of the voltage connector

Double checked connections and they were correct. Haven't had time to check out the Amazon one until next week.

The new multimeter from Amazon works great. Thought the car battery was bad, but seems to be holding a charge ok.

Hi Keith,

Would you be willing to share the make and model of the multimeter you purchased? I have an older meter from Radio Shack (1994?) that still works great but I know I am on borrowed time.

You can PM me if you prefer not to post in this thread.

Thank you.

I thought it was normal to have a half dozen or more meters? Like measuring tapes. I have both in every car plus in the garage and house.
My Radio shack meter is from the early 1980's cost me $200 then and is still one of my favourites.

You deserve a Fluke Rusty as yours won't lay around...

I know that there was negative comments about the HF multimeter and I understand that this was based on negative experience but my experience is that for most purposes, they are fine. They are not extremely accurate and not suitable for precision work but for most automotive work on these cars they serve a good purpose. When they were giving them away free with any purchase I squirreled away a dozen of them. This is just my experience and absolutely respect other opinions.
Jeff

I do have maybe 3 or 4 of the free HF devices around. I am cautious to call them meters. They do give a voltage reading and some indication of resistance. They will help troubleshoot the basics in your car or house.

My experience with them is that the leads are very fragile. They must use 28 gauge stranded wire so they break internally after just a little use.

I also find that the internal electronics are unstable. You cannot use them to reliably check the 0 to 30 ohms on a fuel tank sending unit. I find that they work better if you leave them on a while and let the electronics warm up to give more stable readings.

I've got a couple I bought at Oreillys. Pretty good meters.

This is the one I bought off of Amazon. It is the first one if you search for multimeters.
It works for me as I am a shade tree mechanic on cars.
Etekcity Digital Multimeter, Volt Ohm Amp Meter, Voltage Tester with Continuity, Diode and Resistance Test, Dual Fused for Anti-Burn, Red, MSR-R500
Cannot put a link to it as it could be added to my cart.

yes. I just seen there is a newer version. It is blue. Reviews looked good.

Fun to look so I did and found this one in link below. It does Capacitance so could prove useful for testing Condensers. It's a good brand.

https://www.amazon.com/Multimeter-A...apacitance&qid=1597868464&sr=8-7

Ooh! That one really catches my attention. The ability to do capacitance and temperature is nice to have.

Plus it is a Klein which is a reliable brand. The other well known brand is Fluke.

I also found a Klein with a clamp Ammeter and still Capacitance around $100. Your stuff is so cheap down there!