3 link Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I have very little knowledge of things electrical as you will see, and I am sure it will be a simple answer. I have built some brass tie bars and they recommend you place some double sided tape to insulate the two parts, I would like to be able to test the insulation before I put them in place. I know if I just flashed the bare wires across the two parts I would probably get a spark ( or not ). So is a volt meter the best way of being certain ? ATB, Martyn. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Torr Giffard LSWR 1951-71 Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 ....have a look at a multimeter...I got mine from Maplins. Dave Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gordon s Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 A continuity tester will do the job and you could even lash up something with a bulb and a battery, but as multi meters have a continuity setting, they will pay dividends in the long run. A few quid spent now will pay for itself time and time again. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliff park Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 If you are trying to make sure they are insulated you need the resistance or Ohms range. It will probably be marked as 2K, 2M or similar. It may have the Omega sign against this part of the range. The display will probably be 1. followed by blank space. You want it to NOT change when you put the probes on the test piece. Put the probes together and you will see a change, because this is a short circuit, ie 0 ohms Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium ColinK Posted December 2, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 2, 2014 Hi Martyn, I'm not very good at electrics too. I have a multimeter and I know how to check for continuity and resistance with it, so as others advise, a cheap multimeter should be fine. However, I also have a continuity tester (bought from Kent Panel Controls, sadly no more) which I find much easier for me. All it is is a plastic box containing a battery, bulb (led to be precise) and a buzzer, with two leads coming out of the box. Put the leads on the thing you want to test, if the bulb lights and the buzzer sounds, you have continuity, if not, there is no circuit. You could easily make one. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
3 link Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 Thanks Guys, Your help is most appreicated and thanks for the prompt replies. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
david.hill64 Posted December 4, 2014 Share Posted December 4, 2014 A multimeter is a useful tool. You can use it for continuity testing - eg making sure that all your insulated wheels are on the same side of the loco, checking that pick-ups are actually picking up, finding short circuits. It will also find dry joints etc. If you are just using it for low voltage model rail applications then it does not need to be an expensive instrument. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
black5f Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 You need a cheap multimeter. Maplin do suitable ones starting from £10. Look for one with with a little icon on the range selector that looks like a wifi icon, that's an audible continuity checker. If it's insulated it won't sound, always check operation by touching the probes.. Like this: http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/mt-2017-large-analogue-multimeter-n60lk Continuity setting is at 6 o'clock. Also useful for lots of other things :-) T Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RMweb Premium kevinlms Posted December 8, 2014 RMweb Premium Share Posted December 8, 2014 You need a cheap multimeter. Maplin do suitable ones starting from £10. Look for one with with a little icon on the range selector that looks like a wifi icon, that's an audible continuity checker. If it's insulated it won't sound, always check operation by touching the probes.. Like this: http://www.maplin.co.uk/p/mt-2017-large-analogue-multimeter-n60lk Continuity setting is at 6 o'clock. Also useful for lots of other things :-) T Battery tester is useful too. My wife has a dreadful habit of taking batteries out of items, replacing them and putting dead ones back in the drawer. Drives me nuts & a cause of arguments. WHY would anyone be so dumb? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crosland Posted December 8, 2014 Share Posted December 8, 2014 There are all sorts of things you can do with a "dead" battery. Google "Joule Theif" for one idea. Andrew Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
L&Y Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 Just got a multimeter & continuity tester with buzzer combined from Wickes. £10 Nice bit of kit for the money. Does more than my last one. In case any ones interested. SCHNEIDER DIGITAL COMPACT MULTIMETER Product Code: 119804 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RailWest Posted January 13, 2015 Share Posted January 13, 2015 >>>All it is is a plastic box containing a battery, bulb (led to be precise) and a buzzer, with two leads coming out of the box. Put the leads on the thing you want to test, if the bulb lights and the buzzer sounds, you have continuity, if not, there is no circuit. I would suggest that is not strictly true, unless the 'box' contains a bit more electronics than you suggest. There could indeed be a circuit, but with sufficient resistance to prevent the buzzer sounding or the light being visible. It might not pass 12V DC to work (say) an electric motor, but it could be sufficient to short out more sophisticated electronic circuits (eg DCC). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DCB Posted January 15, 2015 Share Posted January 15, 2015 A good old analogue multimeter is the most useful tool as you can hear the needle clicking back and forth when using the ohms scale as a continuity tester. I have both analogue and maplin digital multimeters and fnd the digital frustratingly difficult to get a stable reading on. I used a door bell for continuity testing in a noisy car repair workshop environment and a coach with pickups on the bogies and a buzzer is very useful for testing when the fault is under the baseboard and you can't see a multimeter or test light from where you think the fault us Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.