Just a couple of minor corrections: the "FM" designation is short for "Fluke Militarized". Also, the low-current input is 320 milliamps - (not 3200). Lastly, the fuse cover isn't to keep the fuses from "vibrating out and coming loose" (although it MAY do that as well); it's to insulate the contacts of the fuse holders from being shorted against the 9V battery's shell (and bypassing the fusing).
I picked up an ex military Fluke 25 on ebay, really good meter mutch better than a new cheap brand one, as long as you like the olive green mod colour. Although it had a poor lcd display, very faint when I got it. I disassembled the LCD display and cleaned both sides of the rubber connector strip and LCD display contacts and board contacts with an alcohol wipe and then reassembled it. Now the display is back to a nice dark black again and easy to read.
I just scored a NOS 27CE, all-yellow, in a case with 2 HV probes and the 85RF RF probe. USMC vintage, never issued, but of course it got a calibration with associated paperwork. And despite being all-yellow, it's got a CAT III rating.
Just scored one on eBay myself from a guy selling them from the Philadelphia area. US here. Anyway, thanks for the rundown. You did a great job and you are a natural! Beauty!
The original micro is a "Fluke" labeled part, with some minor board revisions. All of them, even the newer TI boards are interchangeable. I've taken my late board (like the one Dave shows) and installed it in a real oldy - and vice versa.
Had a FLUKE 27/FM back in my Army days in the late 1980's. These things are built like tanks as Dave has shown in his review. Made me just buy one on Ebay for $60 with the case and high voltage probe.
I just scored a Fluke 27 in all charcoal color for $10.00 US at an estate sale! I got a Fluke 73 III for $5.00 with it! The 27 is in near mint condition, in the box with the original leads, manual and warranty card. It doesn't have the CAT rating, so I opened it up and can date it to sometime after the 39th week of 1988. With the exception of the display board, very close to the FM version you showed us here.
I bagged an as-new ex MoD Fluke 25 a while back, was still in calibration when I got it too! But seeing as I work in the same cal lab I can re-calibrate it whenever I want anyway :)
Grabbed a Fluke 27/FM (US Army version) from a local military surplus store for $25!! Battery still works and it has a recent 2011 calibration sticker! Score :)
Excellent video. This meter is a tank and it have many useful measurements BUT the only think that kills this multimeter is that it doesn't measure capacitance.
I still have an original model 27 that's been in my possession since about 1985 or about 30 years. It is the solid yellow model and has three fuses: 20A, 3A and 630mA. My 20A fuse is blown so I don't use that range of current but other than that it still function pretty much as it did the day I got it. I also have a Fluke 85 that's probably 25 years old or there abouts and is 100% functional.
I think FM stands for Factory Mutual, not For Military. Factory Mutual does intrinsic safety ratings for products used in hazardous environments. This is similar to the Ex rating though from a different rating organization. Fluke does have current products that are advertised as FM rated.
$40?? How the hell did you manage that? I was going to get a Fluke 17B until I saw this, then I remembered why I really want a Fluke; To be able to say "That's not a multimeter, THIS [bangs 27FM on table making 17B leap in the air] is a multimeter!" (PS: I blame this video for making the eBay prices go up...)
daniel montilla lol! Should be plenty of them around. I think they were still making them in 2007-2008 and beyond. Soldering on flat pack ICs under a magnifier, oh the horrors! After that Fluke sort of hit the wall, the military money dried up, stock price dropped to a third, everyone got laid off or retired, and probably all that legacy items were finally retired from production. This brought back some memories though, since I knew a lot of the cranky old ladies who probably built more of those things than anyone living. Well, they were living at the time. 30+ years of occupational lead exposure, can't say if they're still kicking. Oh, saw the numbers. Memory could be off but I think Debbie and Jan did that one on the soldering, etc. Long retired by now, probably the best in the company for soldering and speed.
I have two fluke 27FM and one yellow 27. Funtion switch is better than any other Fluke. My Fluke 27 and 28 series 2 use a garbage switch insted than older flukes 27 series.
They are the serial haters. I get dislikes within minutes of uploading a video, they haven't even watched it yet! Others will dislike any video that is not on a topic that they like.
Hey, could you do a video on power electronics? Like maybe on motor controllers, DC-DC converters, or some other high power device? Also, perhaps you could explain why very few EE's go to the power engineering design route. It seems they all want to be digital designers, RF designers, or analog designers. Any reason why?
geez i got a fluke23 i use every day . didn't know i was using a stone age multimeter. can you point me in the direction of the best, most recent one you suggest , please. and no i have never had a problem with this one. it has always worked good for me . if you would like to do a tear down , i might consider sending it to you. :D
Fluke is the only meter to have if you have to carry one out to the job..these meter can take a lot of abuse. they have good protection I thought we blew ours one day but just open it up and replace the large resistor inside, its like a fuse. order it from fluke.
I just bought a Fluke 25 from ebay for £40 . The thing is bomb proof, water proof , accurate as hell , beautifully made . With the price of these things , anyone buying a cheap chinese meter when these can be had for so little is crazy . The age doesnt matter , it will out live me buy a long long way . I use it for motorcycle building so only really for ohms and voltage so its a perfect meter for me . Dont buy chinese shite , but an old fluke and you`ll never have to buy another .
Can you please do a comparison between the FLUKE 28II and the ever so closely resembled (but "New") FLUKE 87V MAX? Many thanks from all of us who suspect they have taken the same meter and only changed the drop rating to reflect one more additional meter. Cheers!
And it's the product's lifetime, not yours. (as defined by Fluke as 7 years past the date of last manufacture, or 10 years, whichever is greater. Don't quote me, that's from memory, but it's close)
The dislike functioanlity is somwwhat overloaded by youtube. IN addition to saying "this is a bad video" you also need to use it fairly liberally to make the youtube recommendation system work at all well. At least that used to be the case, I don't use the recommendation system, so don't keep up with such things.
Hello Thanks I appreciate your teaching. I need a cheap but good quality multimeter with MinMax function for a car batteri health and status test. Using this Multimeter as a very elementary “DIY” Person on the car's electric and electronics parts also diagnostic of car batteri state starter + Alternator test my measurement of the charging status “ Ripple “ test & reading Ripple ( Max AC Current leak ) from alternator to car batteri. I don’t wanna spend too much on a multimeter * which there is almost no le amidst on how high one can spend on a multimeter so my question is “ Please give me few example of reasonable priced Multimeter for “ DIY beginers ” to have a multimeter Quality enough to the task, without spending a unessary money on the Multimeter just for doing basic work on the car. Thanks a lot - I appreciated very much if get answer sooner. Sincerely Parsa
Just a couple of minor corrections: the "FM" designation is short for "Fluke Militarized". Also, the low-current input is 320 milliamps - (not 3200). Lastly, the fuse cover isn't to keep the fuses from "vibrating out and coming loose" (although it MAY do that as well); it's to insulate the contacts of the fuse holders from being shorted against the 9V battery's shell (and bypassing the fusing).
Witch it doesn't even matter. Since there other that are not mark as FM and they are still for Malitary use.
It's the magic Fluke TouchHold. It detects stable readings and latches, and also auto re-arms.
I picked up an ex military Fluke 25 on ebay, really good meter mutch better than a new cheap brand one, as long as you like the olive green mod colour.
Although it had a poor lcd display, very faint when I got it.
I disassembled the LCD display and cleaned both sides of the rubber connector strip and LCD display contacts and board contacts with an alcohol wipe and then reassembled it.
Now the display is back to a nice dark black again and easy to read.
I got the same meter for £40 . I`ll never have to buy another meter . Just brilliant .
I just scored a NOS 27CE, all-yellow, in a case with 2 HV probes and the 85RF RF probe. USMC vintage, never issued, but of course it got a calibration with associated paperwork. And despite being all-yellow, it's got a CAT III rating.
I can't believe how much better the contrast and readability is on the display compared to my brand new 87V.
Just scored one on eBay myself from a guy selling them from the Philadelphia area. US here. Anyway, thanks for the rundown. You did a great job and you are a natural! Beauty!
No, because the schematic is publicly downloadable on their website.
The original micro is a "Fluke" labeled part, with some minor board revisions. All of them, even the newer TI boards are interchangeable. I've taken my late board (like the one Dave shows) and installed it in a real oldy - and vice versa.
Score indeed! Could resell on ebay for much more, but worth keeping.
Had a FLUKE 27/FM back in my Army days in the late 1980's. These things are built like tanks as Dave has shown in his review.
Made me just buy one on Ebay for $60 with the case and high voltage probe.
Recently bought one from Craigslist for 50 bucks brand new in box with all the paper work that came with it, also still had the twist tie on the leads
Hi Dave, I have the all yellow Fluke 27 and I bought it new in 1989. Still works great but I guess calibration is a little over due.
It sure is! the 260 was the one I used to use also. It was an older series. It may be analog, but it's so accurate!
You REALLY have to post some video of your entire Fluke collection!
I just scored a Fluke 27 in all charcoal color for $10.00 US at an estate sale! I got a Fluke 73 III for $5.00 with it! The 27 is in near mint condition, in the box with the original leads, manual and warranty card. It doesn't have the CAT rating, so I opened it up and can date it to sometime after the 39th week of 1988. With the exception of the display board, very close to the FM version you showed us here.
I bought mine at a pawn shop for $80 USD. It's an amazing multimeter!!! Thanks for the video!
Hi Dave, Yet another very nice video! Thanks! I think I will pick one of these up, just a cool piece of history.
Go for the military 27FM...the charcoal color, that is true RMS and it was made just for the USA ARMY!
that thing costs 200dollars in used state here in Serbia , unbelievable but true
I bagged an as-new ex MoD Fluke 25 a while back, was still in calibration when I got it too! But seeing as I work in the same cal lab I can re-calibrate it whenever I want anyway :)
Haha, we still have one of these things in our electronics lab. I wonder how long it's been there?
Grabbed a Fluke 27/FM (US Army version) from a local military surplus store for $25!! Battery still works and it has a recent 2011 calibration sticker! Score :)
Excellent video. This meter is a tank and it have many useful measurements BUT the only think that kills this multimeter is that it doesn't measure capacitance.
The 8060A is a great meter!
I have a Simpson 260(series 6) that my father bought new,way back when. Great meter!
I still have an original model 27 that's been in my possession since about 1985 or about 30 years. It is the solid yellow model and has three fuses: 20A, 3A and 630mA. My 20A fuse is blown so I don't use that range of current but other than that it still function pretty much as it did the day I got it.
I also have a Fluke 85 that's probably 25 years old or there abouts and is 100% functional.
I picked up a Fluke 25 EX-RAF stock from ebay for 28quid recently with case and leads.
If you don't mind black instead of yellow, the prices are still OK. Same on the inside. Thanks a lot, Dave, yellow is my favorite color.
I think FM stands for Factory Mutual, not For Military. Factory Mutual does intrinsic safety ratings for products used in hazardous environments. This is similar to the Ex rating though from a different rating organization.
Fluke does have current products that are advertised as FM rated.
Great video! what multimeter would you recommend for capacitance measurement?
$40?? How the hell did you manage that?
I was going to get a Fluke 17B until I saw this, then I remembered why I really want a Fluke; To be able to say "That's not a multimeter, THIS [bangs 27FM on table making 17B leap in the air] is a multimeter!"
(PS: I blame this video for making the eBay prices go up...)
Just be patient and you can eventually get good deals on ebay.
EEVblog :-) can u sell me your?? i need one, hi from venezuela i love ur work. keep
daniel montilla
lol! Should be plenty of them around. I think they were still making them in 2007-2008 and beyond. Soldering on flat pack ICs under a magnifier, oh the horrors! After that Fluke sort of hit the wall, the military money dried up, stock price dropped to a third, everyone got laid off or retired, and probably all that legacy items were finally retired from production.
This brought back some memories though, since I knew a lot of the cranky old ladies who probably built more of those things than anyone living. Well, they were living at the time. 30+ years of occupational lead exposure, can't say if they're still kicking.
Oh, saw the numbers. Memory could be off but I think Debbie and Jan did that one on the soldering, etc. Long retired by now, probably the best in the company for soldering and speed.
I have two fluke 27FM and one yellow 27.
Funtion switch is better than any other Fluke.
My Fluke 27 and 28 series 2 use a garbage switch insted than older flukes 27 series.
They are the serial haters. I get dislikes within minutes of uploading a video, they haven't even watched it yet! Others will dislike any video that is not on a topic that they like.
Do you think Fluke will pull IP protection issue again, as with that 189 II video when you showed schematics in the video?
Old is Gold.
Great Vid! Just bought one brand new after I watched your video.
I guess I'm a meter nerd 🤓 I find myself watching all these meter tear downs lol keep it up !
I don't have a Simpson meter. I have a Triplett 630NA
Is it bad to switch the meter while it is connected to a active circuit, I have seen so many people do it and would think it would damage the meter.
Hey, could you do a video on power electronics? Like maybe on motor controllers, DC-DC converters, or some other high power device? Also, perhaps you could explain why very few EE's go to the power engineering design route. It seems they all want to be digital designers, RF designers, or analog designers. Any reason why?
Warranty void if seal broken? Screw that!
That should be on a T-Shirt.
This was the last one that sold for 40 bucks on E-Bay.... but what a score.
still waiting for that Mantis Elite review ....
Hey Dave how does the hold function work on this meter?
I'm shocked through test probe and HV transformer in microwave. My fluke27 always beep diode settings and cannot read accurate voltage etc..
No, not unless the meter is designed poorly.
geez i got a fluke23 i use every day . didn't know i was using a stone age multimeter. can you point me in the direction of the best, most recent one you suggest , please. and no i have never had a problem with this one. it has always worked good for me . if you would like to do a tear down , i might consider sending it to you. :D
How would this one compare to the chinese Fluke 17B? Is it worth trying to find one of these or better just pay $100 and get a 17B?
I just scored one for 25usd. Looks brand new. 👌
Score!
You just raised the prices on eBay !
19:52 -- No, that means the second January of 2004. :P
Damn I want to buy a fluke so much right now.
Much better built than my Extech Dick Smith Electronics clone Multimeter
Fluke is the only meter to have if you have to carry one out to the job..these meter can take a lot of abuse. they have good protection I thought we blew ours one day but just open it up and replace the large resistor inside, its like a fuse. order it from fluke.
Just picked up a 27/FM meter on eBay for $50 shipped.
I just bought a Fluke 25 from ebay for £40 . The thing is bomb proof, water proof , accurate as hell , beautifully made . With the price of these things , anyone buying a cheap chinese meter when these can be had for so little is crazy . The age doesnt matter , it will out live me buy a long long way . I use it for motorcycle building so only really for ohms and voltage so its a perfect meter for me . Dont buy chinese shite , but an old fluke and you`ll never have to buy another .
There is something elegant in an instrument that does not fault by more than 1 least sig digit. Not a norm with 50000 count handheld meters.
Nice vidNice my dad still has his fluke 73 :D
@26:37 that digital section looks a lot like a hitachi 4 bit display interface.
Michael Marzec anyone needing time signature : 26:37
9 years later I finally picked one up for 30 euros :)
I can't test the big fuse 20A and the next
Nah, it's a keeper!
Give it a big "thumbs forward!"
👍 gotta love it!
Wow ,ONLY $40 ,what a bargain,worth a lot more.
engineers they like taking things apart and see how to make it better. Us techs take things apart to fix them. anyway Dave is an ok guy.
Dave,what did the people that clicked dislike, expect from a multimeter teardown?? Regards.
Can you please do a comparison between the FLUKE 28II and the ever so closely resembled (but "New") FLUKE 87V MAX?
Many thanks from all of us who suspect they have taken the same meter and only changed the drop rating to reflect one more additional meter.
Cheers!
nice find on ebay Dave you little ripper..
And it's the product's lifetime, not yours. (as defined by Fluke as 7 years past the date of last manufacture, or 10 years, whichever is greater. Don't quote me, that's from memory, but it's close)
I don't see him selling any more? "rickthompson602t"
In case this wasn't a joke: It's called "Nano Siemens" :-)
Going to torture test this one, too?
12:05 ❤😆
What a beaut!
The dislike functioanlity is somwwhat overloaded by youtube. IN addition to saying "this is a bad video" you also need to use it fairly liberally to make the youtube recommendation system work at all well. At least that used to be the case, I don't use the recommendation system, so don't keep up with such things.
Hello
Thanks I appreciate your teaching. I need a cheap but good quality multimeter with MinMax function for a car batteri health and status test. Using this Multimeter as a very elementary “DIY” Person on the car's electric and electronics parts also diagnostic of car batteri state starter + Alternator test my measurement of the charging status “ Ripple “ test & reading Ripple ( Max AC Current leak ) from alternator to car batteri. I don’t wanna spend too much on a multimeter * which there is almost no le amidst on how high one can spend on a multimeter so my question is “ Please give me few example of reasonable priced Multimeter for “ DIY beginers ” to have a multimeter Quality enough to the task, without spending a unessary money on the Multimeter just for doing basic work on the car. Thanks a lot - I appreciated very much if get answer sooner.
Sincerely Parsa
Great sturdy meters. Waterproof? No. Water "resistant" applies.
MY FLUKE 27 IS GREATE
Everything but Dave-proof? ;)
Dave! you turned it on first again!! what on earth is going on? lol
8:08 Sure it wasn't Dave proof...
A retro meter back then when fluke is made in usa
They’re still made in USA, other than items for the Chinese market.
oh hi
That's the stuff of wet dreams! lol. Do you have the old Simpson meter?
Big, chunky, and ugly. Yet still is durable as hell. Kinda like me.
Solder fillet @ 13:45 looks cracked from here...
johnfranks *13:45*
nano-semen's?
Non stop waffle in Ausi accent 🙄