Professional Member
Hi everyone! I got a job doing maintenance and really need to buy some new gauges. The AK900 look great (read all the threads on here I could find on them) but I'm also wondering how long they would last. Is it like snap on vs other brands where the initial payment pays off in a long life? Usually I buy everything as cheap as I can but I really want to be good with refrigeration so would pay the extra if it will make me very accurate and last a long time. Thanks
Professional Member
I started as a maintenance tech. Honestly, you don't really need anything beyond a standard yellow jacket analog set for cheap.
Professional Member
That's what I was thinking but then I wondered if I should just bite the bullet on the AK900 and have it when I eventually move onto more complicated things. If I buy a standard set for $60 and a clamp on thermocouple for $100 I'm already half way there. I also read that it's best to have two sets, one for r22 and one for r410. So then I'm only $80 away from what everyone on here raves about. If they last five years, that's $16 dollars a year.
A standard $60 dollar pair of r22/r410 gauges plus a $30 dollar thermocouple should be ok for now though right?
Professional Member
You dont needs a set for 22 and a set for 410. As long as you purge the lines on each connection, youll be good. You dont need digitals as a maintenance tech, trust me on that. its overkill. save the money and pput it towards the tools youll need/use
Professional Member
For the two different gauges it seemed people where saying they would either be more accurate for either r22 or r410 because of the pressure difference. Like this: "Sorry to say, I recommend more one set of gages. Gages, especially analog, are not accurate unless the pressures are near the mid rang of the gage set". I'm glad a set of standard gauges will work though, thanks!
Banned
Get an RSA (digital gauges). You won't regret it. Analogs stray off pressure way too much to be as accurate as you need to be. Testo 550 or 557, SMAN 3or SMAN 4....or that other brand.Originally Posted by WarTurtle
Only problem with DC, by the time you buy a decent manifold, buy the better temp clamp, you've spent more than you might pay for another GOOD brand of RSA.
Plus the Testo and SMAN have more useful functions than the DC
Professional Member*
If you want to be maintenance tech your whole life then buy cheap maintenance tech tools (analogs).
If you want to move up in the ranks....get the tools (digitals) and perform the job like a true professional. Digital gauges will help you accurately and quickly diagnose refrigerant related issues.
Good tools aren't cheap. Invest in them and make yourself better,
The AK900's are wonderful and are as tough as nails. Spend the $300 bucks, you won't be disappointed.
Professional Member
Hogwash. I see zero need to buy the expensive stuff until either A) you can afford it or B) it becomes necessity (moving into repairs)
I got moved to repairs two months ago with my "maintenance" tools. They work just fine.
Am I going to buy a set of digitals? You bet I am. SMAN4's in the next month or so.
Professional Member
I have a DRSA 1200 and an AK-900.
The 1200 is about 3 1/2 years old and the 900 is a Beta test model that I've had in almost continuous use for about 3 years.
I don't think that there is a "normal" condition that they could see in the field that mine haven't seen.
Rain, heat, sub-zero temperatures, impacts, oils, you NAME it.
They still function perfectly.
Mine are not the oldest DRSA on this forum, either. Many have them that are 5-7 years old.
Professional Member*
Northstarair,
So, what your saying is just because someone performs maintenances they shouldn't get good tools to help do the job more accurately? They should only buy cheap tools?
I disagree.
Professional Member
Brent, you obviously missed my point A "A) you can afford it". Chances are, if he's new to the field, he can't afford to buy a set of digital. You get what works and what you can afford
Professional Member*
Northstarair,
I don't know what he can and cannot afford. He simply asked about getting a set of AK900's. I think he should purchase these and it will help him become better at his job.....you obviously think differently.
To the OP,
Good tools won't solely make you a better tech. They will help you understand what is happening with the system better and more accurately. The rest is on you....you need to educate and train yourself. Don't wait on others to train you. You in the right place, stick around here and absorb all the knowledge possible.
Professional Member*
Get the AKs they are great. And they will help you be a better tech because they are more accurate and you will be more efficient because you watch both temps and pressure s in real time with one hook up. Watching the numbers while you adjust or expirement is great knowledge you can't get out of a book. I got mine very reasonably with a 1/4 turn manifold and love them. Most people against RSA have never owned a good set. You will not regret it.Hi everyone! I got a job doing maintenance and really need to buy some new gauges. The AK900 look great (read all the threads on here I could find on them) but I'm also wondering how long they would last. Is it like snap on vs other brands where the initial payment pays off in a long life? Usually I buy everything as cheap as I can but I really want to be good with refrigeration so would pay the extra if it will make me very accurate and last a long time. Thanks
Sent from my XT907 using Tapatalk 2
Professional Member*
Is it easy to calibrate the pipe clamps temp reading on the AK900? Does it hold a temp setting well. I find that my fieldpiece SC 77 does not hold a pipe clamp calibration for long, and that is very annoying!
-Marty
Professional Member
Unlike "k-type" thermocouples used by other models, thermistors sensors used by the AK-900 do not need calibration.
Banned
That is utter bunk. They may not need field calibration like K-types but you are insinuating an instrument never needs calibration.
Pure nonsense.
Banned
AKs should be calibrated annually ...as any conscience instrument maintenance program calls for.
Banned
Jp you are going to run out of whipping boys when FP stops using Type-Ks...and it won't be all that long til it happens.
Professional Member
They say they run K sensors because that is what guys want.
Why would they stop giving their customers what they want?
And as far as evacuation thru a service manifold since forever from reading some old publications on the subject it actually condemns practices like this. This is something that has been neglected over decades until recently.
“If You Can Dodge A Wrench You Can Dodge A Ball”
Professional Member
The "old timers" knew their stuff and did things correctly.
The newer generation are the ones who want "all-in-one" tools with a vacuum pump, vacuum gauge, hi-flow hoses, core removers, SH/SC calculation, target SH calcultion, airflow computation, total refrigerating effect calculations, and a ham sandwich included with their manifolds.
Oh, did I leave out a cup of coffee and a cold beer when the job is over? Yeah, they'll probably want that, too.
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