milwaukee fork meter review

[blitz]

I bough a new milwaukee 2206-20 fork meter to replace my problematic klein tools CL2000. Initial impression: dang, they use a lot of red colouring... But the unit looks really nice. It has high contrast display, so much better than fluke, UEI, field piece, u name it. It doesn't need the backlight on the display ( don't have one anyway), but you could see it easily in dark places. has hold function and led work light. I think it's a direct competitor to fluke t5-1000.

performance: very quick to read any voltage/current draw. non contact voltage indicator will it up as soon as it detect any power source. also got true RMS for accurate measurement, fluke t5-1000 dont' have them. I think the down fall is it only single decimal place. I'd like to see at least two decimal places on the measurement, but that's nit picking. it has nice leads holder at the back (like fluke fork meter), and there are protector for the leads that came with it. It lacks back magnets like uei or klein product. I'm pretty sure extech has magnet on the back too. reads micro amp for flame current. when I have to read some caps today it reads it very quickly, not going to thinking mode like my old klein does. t5-1000 don't have micro farads. it also has temp reading, fluke don't have them. I think the only annoying thing is that it beeps each time I change mode and this doesn't come with tool pouch

The story I got from wholesaler is some fluke engineers that out of work since amprobe bought fluke out work for milwaukee to provide them with a line of multi meter. If its engineer by ex fluke employee, I'm pretty sure it will hold up. I paid $121 with special discount from the wholesaler. very happy with it so far, much more happier than my klein tools. Got nothing against fluke t5-1000, but it has less feature for about the same amount of money. We'll see how it hold up over the winter.

[Tech Rob]

I've wondered about those meters every time I saw them in W.W.G. or the Orange Square. Thanks for the review!

[itsiceman]

Have you had it long? Says 26 hrs of battery life

[blitz]

Have you had it long? Says 26 hrs of battery life

I didn't see the 26hrs battery life.... this is the 1st day I actually used it at work. I've used it over the weekend to play around at home, but nothing too special.

[kiwireeferman]

I too have one of these. Went through 3 Fluke T5's (rubbish) cracked screens, premature failure etc.
Have been using the Milwaukee on a daily basis for at least a year and changed the batteries once. Without a dought, the best "toolbag" tester
I have owned. LOVE IT.

[tuba]

What kind of problems were you having with the CL2000 ? I picked one up from a pawn shop to try it out and I absolutely love it. Never had any problems with it. I used to be an Amprobe guy till I tried the CL2000.

[blitz]

What kind of problems were you having with the CL2000 ? I picked one up from a pawn shop to try it out and I absolutely love it. Never had any problems with it. I used to be an Amprobe guy till I tried the CL2000.

mine would go to just blank line ( ---) every now and then. or it would just reset itself.. or it went completely blank, I have to switch mode or turn it off then back to whatever mode I was on. it practically brand new. new battery too. was replaced once under warranty, but it's now just ran out of warranty. I just fed up with it. It's non critical (kinda), but it's annoying. It's a good meter when it's working.

my old one is worse than that. I 'm on my 2nd CL2000. my old one sometime would just display weird line ( part of the duty cycle bar on the bottom), blank line. need to be reset once or twice before working properly, etc. I kept both inside the pouch, and it didn't get banged around. so yea. the cold canadian weather might play a factor, but the newer one is new this spring. both of them has the same symptomp.

[tuba]

That is too bad. I love all the features on the CL2000. The only thing I noticed is that it needed really good batteries from the start, or it would act funny.

[Fan Blade]

I bough a new milwaukee 2206-20 fork meter to replace my problematic klein tools CL2000. Initial impression: dang, they use a lot of red colouring... But the unit looks really nice. It has high contrast display, so much better than fluke, UEI, field piece, u name it. It doesn't need the backlight on the display ( don't have one anyway), but you could see it easily in dark.

The story I got from wholesaler is some fluke engineers that out of work since amprobe bought fluke out work for milwaukee to provide them with a line of multi meter. If its engineer by ex fluke employee, I'm pretty sure it will hold up. I paid $121 with special discount from the wholesaler. very happy with it so far, much more happier than my klein tools. Got nothing against fluke t5-1000, but it has less feature for about the same amount of money. We'll see how it hold up over the winter.

Actually, it does have a backlight, and it is always on. You need a bright backlight to do that high contrast display all the time. That is why the battery life is so bad. If you use the meter a lot, you will go through batteries fast.

Also, the story you heard about Fluke engineers going to Milwaukee is wrong. I know people who work at Fluke. It was not engineers, but young marketing guys who worked on meter accessories at Fluke, and not meters. The meter line has done so badly for Milwaukee, that all those Fluke guys have now all been fired. So, don't count on the Milwaukee quality to be like Fluke.

[blitz]

Actually, it does have a backlight, and it is always on. You need a bright backlight to do that high contrast display all the time. That is why the battery life is so bad. If you use the meter a lot, you will go through batteries fast.

Also, the story you heard about Fluke engineers going to Milwaukee is wrong. I know people who work at Fluke. It was not engineers, but young marketing guys who worked on meter accessories at Fluke, and not meters. The meter line has done so badly for Milwaukee, that all those Fluke guys have now all been fired. So, don't count on the Milwaukee quality to be like Fluke.

oh well, I like it so far. I change my battery yearly in the fall anyway. I've never been fluke fan to begin with. fluke this and fluke that, if you can't use it it just expensive piece of eqp.... It's like comparing buying base BMW 1 or getting fully loaded hyundai genesis coupe. which one will give you best bang for your buck...

[tuba]

I know the feeling. Fluke had a big counter day at the parts house yesterday. I usually stop and chat it up with the reps at any counter day. But since I saw it was Fluke, I didn't even give it a second glance and walked on by.

[fruxigesan]

Hey,
Tools with the Milwaukee label are always nice tools and this meter is no exception. It's the entry-level meter in a series. There's a handy LED work light that illuminates the work area in hard-to-reach spots. Also a nice 'hold' button to freeze the display if your eyes can't go where your arms can.
Milwaukee Locksmith