Continuity checker - where to buy?
 

I have a continuity checker which consists of a lamp, a battery, a crocodile
clip and a sharp pointer which can detect a break in the line with no
voltage in the circuit.
I have had mine for years but cannot trace where I bought it.
I want to buy one for a friend who is a model railway enthusiast and it
would be very helpful to him to be able to detect which rail is faulty in a
large circuit with numerous rails joined together.
Any suggestions?
Blair

I have a continuity checker which consists of a lamp, a battery, a
crocodile
clip and a sharp pointer which can detect a break in the line with no
voltage in the circuit.
I have had mine for years but cannot trace where I bought it.

Just buy any cheap multimeter which claims a continuity tester buzzer.
Should only cost a couple of quid, and you get a fully featured multimeter
thrown in. The buzzer is better than a bulb. You don't have to look, and
brief continuity is indicated better than a slowly warming bulb.

Christian.

"Christian McArdle" wrote in message
. net...
I have a continuity checker which consists of a lamp, a battery, a
crocodile
clip and a sharp pointer which can detect a break in the line with no
voltage in the circuit.
I have had mine for years but cannot trace where I bought it.

Just buy any cheap multimeter which claims a continuity tester buzzer.
Should only cost a couple of quid, and you get a fully featured multimeter
thrown in. The buzzer is better than a bulb. You don't have to look, and
brief continuity is indicated better than a slowly warming bulb.

Christian.

Thanks for you help. I've certainly learnt a lot from your message- I had no
idea that a multimeter had this facility.
Unfortunately in my case when I looked my multimeter does not have this
facility and it cost me £17.50!
I looked up Squires tool catalogue and they have one for £8.95 which
includes a continuity facility.
I also noticed in their catalogue there was a Digital Multi-function tester
that looks like a screwdriver and allows checking without dismantling or
having any contact with live parts. Applications include "break point" in
wiring, continuity testing, etc Price £4.95 What do you think of that one?
Thanks again
Blair

Blair wrote:
Thanks for you help. I've certainly learnt a lot from your message- I had no
idea that a multimeter had this facility.
Unfortunately in my case when I looked my multimeter does not have this
facility and it cost me £17.50!

You need to set it to measure resistance. If there's no connection it
will be infinite. Otherwise it should display a low number.

alex.

--
Alex Meaden
Technical Support Officer
Computing Service
University of Kent

You need to set it to measure resistance. If there's no connection it
will be infinite. Otherwise it should display a low number.

A proper continuity tester function is leagues better, though. The beep
means you don't need to look at the screen.

Christian.

"Alex" wrote in message
...
Blair wrote:
Thanks for you help. I've certainly learnt a lot from your message- I
had no
idea that a multimeter had this facility.
Unfortunately in my case when I looked my multimeter does not have this
facility and it cost me £17.50!

You need to set it to measure resistance. If there's no connection it
will be infinite. Otherwise it should display a low number.

alex.

--
Alex Meaden
Technical Support Officer
Computing Service
University of Kent

Thanks for your help, I.m learning a lot!
In my case when I read resistance on a continuous rail I get 0 but if there
is a break I get 1. I had assumed that infinite would be a very large number
or am I wrong?
Blair

In my case when I read resistance on a continuous rail I get 0 but if
there
is a break I get 1. I had assumed that infinite would be a very large
number
or am I wrong?

On many digital multimeters, it reads '1' to indicate infinite, often with a
flashing symbol or other indication. Real 1 would be displayed "1.00", which
doesn't mean infinite.

Christian.

"Christian McArdle" wrote in message
. net...
In my case when I read resistance on a continuous rail I get 0 but if
there
is a break I get 1. I had assumed that infinite would be a very large
number
or am I wrong?

On many digital multimeters, it reads '1' to indicate infinite, often with
a
flashing symbol or other indication. Real 1 would be displayed "1.00",
which
doesn't mean infinite.

Christian.

Thanks Christian.
Blair

In message , Blair
writes
I have a continuity checker which consists of a lamp, a battery, a crocodile
clip and a sharp pointer which can detect a break in the line with no
voltage in the circuit.
I have had mine for years but cannot trace where I bought it.
I want to buy one for a friend who is a model railway enthusiast and it
would be very helpful to him to be able to detect which rail is faulty in a
large circuit with numerous rails joined together.

Just buy a cheap DMM from Maplins, CPC or somewhere like that

then you can measure continuity, resistance and volts (and amps of
you're feeling adventurous)

--
geoff

In message , Christian
McArdle writes
You need to set it to measure resistance. If there's no connection it
will be infinite. Otherwise it should display a low number.

A proper continuity tester function is leagues better, though. The beep
means you don't need to look at the screen.

Almost all DMMs now include a continuity test function

--
geoff

In message , Blair
writes

"Alex" wrote in message
...
Blair wrote:
Thanks for you help. I've certainly learnt a lot from your message- I
had no
idea that a multimeter had this facility.
Unfortunately in my case when I looked my multimeter does not have this
facility and it cost me £17.50!

You need to set it to measure resistance. If there's no connection it
will be infinite. Otherwise it should display a low number.

alex.

--
Alex Meaden
Technical Support Officer
Computing Service
University of Kent

Thanks for your help, I.m learning a lot!
In my case when I read resistance on a continuous rail I get 0 but if there
is a break I get 1. I had assumed that infinite would be a very large number
or am I wrong?
Well, actually, you'll probably get somewhere between 0.3 and
1.something depending on the resistance of the leads

"Infinite" or rather open circuit is usually denoted by 1. on the right
side of the display or OC or something like that

Touch the probes together, you'll soon see the difference

And you normally get a buzzer on the lowest resistance scale

--
geoff

raden wrote in :

In message , Christian
McArdle writes
You need to set it to measure resistance. If there's no connection it
will be infinite. Otherwise it should display a low number.

A proper continuity tester function is leagues better, though. The beep
means you don't need to look at the screen.

Almost all DMMs now include a continuity test function


Ah! - so Drivel has a continuity problem? No - you wrote DMM not DIMM....

--
Rod

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
Blair wrote:
I have a continuity checker which consists of a lamp, a battery, a
crocodile clip and a sharp pointer which can detect a break in the line
with no voltage in the circuit. I have had mine for years but cannot
trace where I bought it. I want to buy one for a friend who is a model
railway enthusiast and it would be very helpful to him to be able to
detect which rail is faulty in a large circuit with numerous rails
joined together. Any suggestions?

You'll get a multimeter from Maplin etc for a couple of quid that will
include a continuity buzzer good enough for a go/no go situation.

Indeed, and this one in particular at =A33.99 will be more than up to
the job, and more besides:

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?...43&doy=3D27m7D

Mathew

In message , Rod
writes
raden wrote in :

In message , Christian
McArdle writes
You need to set it to measure resistance. If there's no connection it
will be infinite. Otherwise it should display a low number.

A proper continuity tester function is leagues better, though. The beep
means you don't need to look at the screen.

Almost all DMMs now include a continuity test function


Ah! - so Drivel has a continuity problem? No - you wrote DMM not DIMM....

If I meant dIMM, I would have said incontinence

(I was sooo tempted)

--
geoff

In article ,
Blair wrote:

Thanks for you help. I've certainly learnt a lot from your message- I had no
idea that a multimeter had this facility.
Unfortunately in my case when I looked my multimeter does not have this
facility and it cost me £17.50!


If you've a maplin store nearby then something like:

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=-10943

would do you. I picked up a cheap meter that I tend to have kicking about
for under 3 quid a few months back. Checking it against a fluke it's
surprisingly accurate!

Darren