Bought a cheap multimeter from Harbor Freight and it cost me a whole afternoon

I tried saving money with a $15 multimeter to test continuity on a wiring harness. It gave me false readings and I spent 3 hours chasing a problem that wasn't there. Has anyone else had a bad experience using budget test gear?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_mia24d ago

...and that reminds me of the time I bought a "precision" torque wrench from a gas station for like $12. I was putting together a bike and the thing clicked after barely any pressure on it. Then I checked it on something I had already tightened by feel and it didn't click at all until I was cranking like a maniac. I spent half the day stripping bolts and redoing everything by hand. Sometimes cheap gear just costs you more in the long run, you know?

blakem8224d ago

Respectfully, I gotta push back on this one @the_mia. A $12 gas station torque wrench is basically a toy, and expecting it to work like a real tool is like buying a $20 drone and being mad it can't film a movie. I've used a cheap beam-style torque wrench for years and it's been fine as long as you don't drop it or treat it like a hammer. You get what you pay for sure, but there's a middle ground between junk and Snap-on prices that works just fine for bike stuff.