Chris Nellist wrote:

My question is, do I really need the specific fuse
they recommend, or can I use another one instead?

You need the right rating. I can't think of any reason you need a
special "multimeter fuse" (if there is such a thing) unless it is a non
standard physical size.

The manual says get an "identical" fuse, then gives
a colon, and specifies 250V and 500mA. It also says
phi5X20(mm), which I assume just means 5mm in diameter
and 20mm long.

How about:

http://cpc.farnell.com/jsp/endecaSea...=FF00332&N=411

Maplins say the only fuse that will do is the one
with their product code N65CA.

Could be because they don't list 500mA 20mm glass fuses in their fuses
section. So in a sense that may be the only one they do that is suitable.

I would be grateful if someone could tell me
whether another fuse would be OK - i.e. one that
I might actually get hold of tomorrow rather
than waiting for indefinitely!

I would have no worries about substituting the CPC part I linked to above.


--
Cheers,

John.

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