Strouty
Well-known member
Please post the part number of the vessel tool, looks like it could be useful. Thanks!
Tools of Japan
- Thread starter Frankstools
- Start date
I think it's the model Vessel Megadora 970 cr-300
theamcguy
Well-known member
I ordered it from JDV Products
Very nice!
What is the diameter of the chuck/ holder on the 6310?
Thanks
The black collar of the chuck is 14.3 mm wide and 17.7 mm long.
Other dimensions:
overall length of tool 21.5 cm
total length of shaft (including chuck) 10.3 cm
1foxracing
Well-known member
Vessel pry tool
https://www.vesseltools.com/handtools/screwdrivers/megadora/970-cr-300-detail
I own it as well
https://www.vesseltools.com/handtools/screwdrivers/megadora/970-cr-300-detail
I own it as well
thank you!
rustbucket5
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2015
- Messages
- 252
where are you guys finding those ips pliers?
superautobacs
Well-known member
Available through i-Tools, at least since 2009, when I bought my pair.
with a date code of 2008:
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/25389271714/in/photolist-EFyDW3-FbUPpy" title="IPS"><img src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1684/25389271714_cb02162186_b.jpg" width="1024" height="680" alt="IPS"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I just used the bent nose pair a couple weeks ago. They are decent quality pliers, especially for the price.
with a date code of 2008:
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/25389271714/in/photolist-EFyDW3-FbUPpy" title="IPS"><img src="https://farm2.staticflickr.com/1684/25389271714_cb02162186_b.jpg" width="1024" height="680" alt="IPS"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
I just used the bent nose pair a couple weeks ago. They are decent quality pliers, especially for the price.
Reed Prince
Well-known member
Dave455
Well-known member
I have the TX - 10 myself. There are better bit drivers out there, but it's pretty good. Really good for the money in fact. Mine lives in my woodworking box, specifically for using on the crappier woodscrews.
I really like the look of that TD-6310HX. That handle style is called 'Crystalline'.
Unfortunately, none of the folks who stock Vessal drivers in the U.K. bother to keep the Crystalline range. Shame, as I think it's one of their best lines!
Onlyqualitytools a large UK hand tool vendor seems to be abandoning Vessel and not restocking stuff as it runs out https://www.onlyqualitytools.com/catalog/Shop_by_Brand_Vessel.html
jimmyin3D
Banned
that wobble driver looks interesting! can i ask how you like it?
Recently, I had to do a bit of work in an awkward postion removing and replacing hose clamps that had a hex head and a flat slot. Out of habit I usually used a flat screwdriver, but decided to use a socket on the wobble head driver and things went way faster and smoother. I kicked myself for not using it sooner.
PS, I also bought the 1/4 version of the same tool.
rustbucket5
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 22, 2015
- Messages
- 252
thanks guys!
hautpot
Well-known member
Hozan pliers are seriously underrated. I am ordering some more.
Reed Prince
Well-known member
Not exactly on-topic, but here is a short article about a Japanese wooden joint museum: http://www.spoon-tamago.com/2018/03/07/kigumi-the-japanese-museum-of-interlocking-wooden-joints/
superautobacs
Well-known member
Thanks for the heads-up.
That reminds me of the Takenaka Carpentry Museum I went to last April, where I took some photos:
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/34708826915/in/album-72157681753140331/" title="DSC_5142"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4183/34708826915_0b8c2e8f02_b.jpg" width="681" height="1024" alt="DSC_5142"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/33899427943/in/album-72157681753140331/" title="DSC_5141"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4186/33899427943_aa5c122ce3_b.jpg" width="1024" height="681" alt="DSC_5141"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/34668646586/in/album-72157681753140331/" title="DSC_5143"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4181/34668646586_bc0ee7b688_b.jpg" width="1024" height="681" alt="DSC_5143"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
click here for the full album: https://flic.kr/s/aHskWC9Qhc
That reminds me of the Takenaka Carpentry Museum I went to last April, where I took some photos:
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/34708826915/in/album-72157681753140331/" title="DSC_5142"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4183/34708826915_0b8c2e8f02_b.jpg" width="681" height="1024" alt="DSC_5142"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/33899427943/in/album-72157681753140331/" title="DSC_5141"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4186/33899427943_aa5c122ce3_b.jpg" width="1024" height="681" alt="DSC_5141"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<a data-flickr-embed="true" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/ccassan/34668646586/in/album-72157681753140331/" title="DSC_5143"><img src="https://farm5.staticflickr.com/4181/34668646586_bc0ee7b688_b.jpg" width="1024" height="681" alt="DSC_5143"></a><script async src="//embedr.flickr.com/assets/client-code.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
click here for the full album: https://flic.kr/s/aHskWC9Qhc
Strouty
Well-known member
Reed Prince
Well-known member
It appears they no longer make that model.
I suppose you could fashion one out of one of these.
Reed Prince
Well-known member
Today's deliveries from Amazon.
A couple of weeks ago I purchased the Vessel TX-10 set for $18 bucks + free shipping through Amazon. I love those specific styled handles that Vessel offers on their screwdrivers. I keep that specific set in my tool box with high end tools. (I have like six different tool boxes, just OCD)
Though Vessel makes some of the best quality screwdrivers that I have ever used and are awesome to use as well. So just about anything Vessel produces on screwdrivers, I know will be top quality in my book.
Plus the fact that I am a sucker for acetate handle tools.
So with that being said, yes that TD-6310HX screwdriver set does look sweet with it's acetate handle and all but still that handle is no match for the handle that comes with the TX-10 set. It's just a basic common screwdriver design styled handle, that's all.
Currently Amazon has the TD-6310HX set listed for well over $33.00 bucks (not including shipping!) and I know that I definitely can get it at a cheaper price, like the TX-10 set, just have to wait that's all.
Just my $0.02
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Yeehaw! More goodies from Amazon.jp...
All nicely packaged as usual...
Engineer gear:
PZ58 Screw Pliers
PH-55 Scissors
These have all been reviewed and discussed a fair bit, so I won't repeat.
TWM-08 Stubby Thin-jaw Adjustable (2mm thick)
Definitely not a match for the TOP spanners I showed earlier, COO not mentioned, so perhaps even China? I just got them because a really thin jaw is sometimes required, and the thin jaw TOP spanner I got earlier is 4.5mm whereas these are 2mm. Nice enough product though, the handle moulding is typical Engineer quality, the jaw slop is quite decent for a basic wrench.
Exquisite Keiba:
HEC-D05 Long Nose
HEC-D15 Bent Long Nose
HLC-D04 Short Nose with serration & cutter
HTC-D04 Taper Head Nippers
The two HEC have recently been shown in full detail by Tanukiboy, so here is just a close up of the two others:
The two HEC are perfectly converging at the end just like Tanukiboy's ones, they will happily pick up a piece of waxed paper 0.05mm thick (two thou). The end of the tip is about 1.6mm wide.
The HLC do not quite converge at the tip, I think this is because of the cutter, which has to **** up when closed. The cutter does a perfect job cutting the said 0.05mm waxed paper, and also a couple of bits of wire I've tried. The waxed paper will slip through the tips if the plier is lightly closed, but will grip it if you press a bit. They certainly grab a 0.1mm feeler gauge strongly. I think the closing is exactly as per design and works a treat. The only thing slightly imperfect is the split line in the jaws is not right in the middle so one side is deeper than the other. My experience is that this causes the thinner jaw to bend early when overloaded. Given that the other two longer/thinner are perfect in this regard, I would say this is a slight fault.
The HTC nippers are lovely, every bit as good as my similar Lindstrom $100 nippers at work.
Do not be put off by the "Pro-Hobby" name, it is likely an unfortunate translation error... Pro-Mini or Micro-Pro might have been more appropriate. These are premium pliers, the grind and finish on the hinges and head are superb, the hinge is totally smooth out of the packet, the two component handles are tactile without being blocky or cumbersome.
Very, very nice...
All nicely packaged as usual...
Engineer gear:
PZ58 Screw Pliers
PH-55 Scissors
These have all been reviewed and discussed a fair bit, so I won't repeat.
TWM-08 Stubby Thin-jaw Adjustable (2mm thick)
Definitely not a match for the TOP spanners I showed earlier, COO not mentioned, so perhaps even China? I just got them because a really thin jaw is sometimes required, and the thin jaw TOP spanner I got earlier is 4.5mm whereas these are 2mm. Nice enough product though, the handle moulding is typical Engineer quality, the jaw slop is quite decent for a basic wrench.
Exquisite Keiba:
HEC-D05 Long Nose
HEC-D15 Bent Long Nose
HLC-D04 Short Nose with serration & cutter
HTC-D04 Taper Head Nippers
The two HEC have recently been shown in full detail by Tanukiboy, so here is just a close up of the two others:
The two HEC are perfectly converging at the end just like Tanukiboy's ones, they will happily pick up a piece of waxed paper 0.05mm thick (two thou). The end of the tip is about 1.6mm wide.
The HLC do not quite converge at the tip, I think this is because of the cutter, which has to **** up when closed. The cutter does a perfect job cutting the said 0.05mm waxed paper, and also a couple of bits of wire I've tried. The waxed paper will slip through the tips if the plier is lightly closed, but will grip it if you press a bit. They certainly grab a 0.1mm feeler gauge strongly. I think the closing is exactly as per design and works a treat. The only thing slightly imperfect is the split line in the jaws is not right in the middle so one side is deeper than the other. My experience is that this causes the thinner jaw to bend early when overloaded. Given that the other two longer/thinner are perfect in this regard, I would say this is a slight fault.
The HTC nippers are lovely, every bit as good as my similar Lindstrom $100 nippers at work.
Do not be put off by the "Pro-Hobby" name, it is likely an unfortunate translation error... Pro-Mini or Micro-Pro might have been more appropriate. These are premium pliers, the grind and finish on the hinges and head are superb, the hinge is totally smooth out of the packet, the two component handles are tactile without being blocky or cumbersome.
Very, very nice...
Last edited:
Just a quick heads-up for GJ members who live in Japan.
Rainy season is right around the corner, and I've been concerned that all the new tools I've bought since joining GJ might get rusty.
Over in the "Preventing rust?" thread, a member who goes by shanny19 mentioned vapor corrosion inhibitor (VCI) paper and chips, which I had never heard of before. It seems that the big manufacturer in the US is Zerust Excor.
After searching around Amazon Japan for quite a while, I found that Japan-made Zerust products are sold under the TRUSCO brand as "ゼラスト". They sell the paper, bags, chips, and capsules. As you'd expect, the prices are 2-3 times higher than in the US, but it still seems like cheap insurance for expensive tools.
View media item 81601
Rainy season is right around the corner, and I've been concerned that all the new tools I've bought since joining GJ might get rusty.
Over in the "Preventing rust?" thread, a member who goes by shanny19 mentioned vapor corrosion inhibitor (VCI) paper and chips, which I had never heard of before. It seems that the big manufacturer in the US is Zerust Excor.
After searching around Amazon Japan for quite a while, I found that Japan-made Zerust products are sold under the TRUSCO brand as "ゼラスト". They sell the paper, bags, chips, and capsules. As you'd expect, the prices are 2-3 times higher than in the US, but it still seems like cheap insurance for expensive tools.
View media item 81601
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Today's deliveries from Amazon.
Have you got a link to the Hyper Long pliers on Amazon? I couldn't find them on USA or JP.
Also those nail clippers rock! Got a couple pairs recently.
Seth
Reed Prince
Well-known member
Thanks!
Ordered the Hyper long straight and the bent thin nose slip joint pliers. Price including shipping was best through amazon jp for the two.
Seth
Last edited:
paulsomlo
Well-known member
$65 with free shipping?
superautobacs
Well-known member
Latest Tools for Thought video:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GymyKlF88WM" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
What inspired the Japanese to create a series of pliers with a built-in screw-extraction feature? What's with the recent craze with this type of pliers? This video will touch on this subject and offer some background and history behind this seemingly recent phenomenon.
The first name that comes my mind when I think of screw-extraction pliers is 3.Peaks. 3.Peaks is a pliers manufacture in Northern Japan that produces specialist and precision cutting/grabbing pliers.
Engineer is a company that specializes in procuring tools that meet Engineer's requirements and provides them to the electronics industry and associated trades. The "Nejisaurus/Vampliers" pliers are produced to Engineer's own specs/patented design by one of the few pliers manufacturers currently operating in Northern Japan, then inspected/packaged by Engineer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Screw extraction pliers featured in this video:
3.Peaks part # DS150TZ
3.Peaks (locking pliers) part # DS130
Engineer part # DF PZ-33
Lobster part # TG200NA
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.Peaks "Daiya" series: http://www.3peaks.co.jp/product/diatype/index.html
Engineer "Nejisaurus" series: http://www.engineer.jp/products/nipper/np04
or
Vampire Tools "Vampliers" series: https://www.vampiretools.com/shop/products/pliers/
Lobster "Nejiaguirus" series: http://www.lobtex.co.jp/products/tabid/139/catid/17/pcatid/1/Default.aspx
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A couple other Japanese pliers manufacturers offering screw-extraction pliers:
Merry part # ZA-185: http://www.muromoto.co.jp/search/detail.php?model=ZA185
Fujiya part # SP26-175: http://www.fujiya-kk.com/en/products/47/
The Fujiya version is rebranded and sold under these brands:
Tone with part # BNP-175
KTC with part # PSN-175
Lobster with part # NA
Hozan part # P-213B is sourced from 3.Peaks: http://www.hozan.co.jp/E/catalog/Cutters/P213B.html
*Just like Engineer, Hozan doesn't list any manufacturing plants on their websites. So, they source their tools from various manufacturers, both domestic and overseas companies.
Link to the 2009 Factory Gear Magazine article featuring Bolt's Antique Tool Museum on the Garage Journal forum: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=213789
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GymyKlF88WM" frameborder="0" allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen></iframe>
What inspired the Japanese to create a series of pliers with a built-in screw-extraction feature? What's with the recent craze with this type of pliers? This video will touch on this subject and offer some background and history behind this seemingly recent phenomenon.
The first name that comes my mind when I think of screw-extraction pliers is 3.Peaks. 3.Peaks is a pliers manufacture in Northern Japan that produces specialist and precision cutting/grabbing pliers.
Engineer is a company that specializes in procuring tools that meet Engineer's requirements and provides them to the electronics industry and associated trades. The "Nejisaurus/Vampliers" pliers are produced to Engineer's own specs/patented design by one of the few pliers manufacturers currently operating in Northern Japan, then inspected/packaged by Engineer.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Screw extraction pliers featured in this video:
3.Peaks part # DS150TZ
3.Peaks (locking pliers) part # DS130
Engineer part # DF PZ-33
Lobster part # TG200NA
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.Peaks "Daiya" series: http://www.3peaks.co.jp/product/diatype/index.html
Engineer "Nejisaurus" series: http://www.engineer.jp/products/nipper/np04
or
Vampire Tools "Vampliers" series: https://www.vampiretools.com/shop/products/pliers/
Lobster "Nejiaguirus" series: http://www.lobtex.co.jp/products/tabid/139/catid/17/pcatid/1/Default.aspx
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A couple other Japanese pliers manufacturers offering screw-extraction pliers:
Merry part # ZA-185: http://www.muromoto.co.jp/search/detail.php?model=ZA185
Fujiya part # SP26-175: http://www.fujiya-kk.com/en/products/47/
The Fujiya version is rebranded and sold under these brands:
Tone with part # BNP-175
KTC with part # PSN-175
Lobster with part # NA
Hozan part # P-213B is sourced from 3.Peaks: http://www.hozan.co.jp/E/catalog/Cutters/P213B.html
*Just like Engineer, Hozan doesn't list any manufacturing plants on their websites. So, they source their tools from various manufacturers, both domestic and overseas companies.
Link to the 2009 Factory Gear Magazine article featuring Bolt's Antique Tool Museum on the Garage Journal forum: https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=213789
It's a dream come true for me. When I was like 10 years old(maybe younger, messing with my wagon) I needed to get a screw out and it kept slipping with my pliers, I realized the teeth were the problem so I held the pliers the other way and bruised my knuckles as I did it. I wished someone would make these pliers until I discovered them a few years ago.
I'm sure there have been hundreds of people that have had the thought but didn't have the ability to make them. Thankfully someone started making them and it's blowing up because it's a tool that everyone needs at some point.
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hautpot
Well-known member
i enjoyed all 17 minutes of that.
Reed Prince
Well-known member
Thanks for another excellent video!
The 3.Peaks DS-150TZ seem nearly the same as these Hozan P-213B, and as a pair of 3.Peaks wire cutters I posted earlier also had almost identical Hozan equivalents, I wonder if 3.Peaks manufactures many Hozan pliers.
I think the same that 3peaks makes most Hozan pliers, possibly their top ones!Thanks for another excellent video!
The 3.Peaks DS-150TZ seem nearly the same as these Hozan P-213B, and as a pair of 3.Peaks wire cutters I posted earlier also had almost identical Hozan equivalents, I wonder if 3.Peaks manufactures many Hozan pliers.
Sent from my SM-A510F using Tapatalk
Thanks for the video and the information.
jalind
Well-known member
jalind
Well-known member
Sanwa EM7000 FET Multitester . . .
Sanwa, the Japanese electronics company is not to be confused with Sunwa, a Chinese (PRC) company that makes dirt cheap VOM multimeters found nearly everwhere that sells dirt cheap multimeters in North America. Oh, those clever Chinese and their product names that look and sound so similar to other companies whose high quality products sell for about 10x the price.
Sanwa is better known in North America for its radio controlled hobby control electronics. They do not market their electrical measuring instruments here. They have two entire lines of multimeters/multitesters, one analog like this one and the other digital. Their multimeter lines are very well known in the Pacific Rim, including the Philippines. I've seen some presence in Europe but don't know how widespread that is. Analog meters are still in demand and have a number of applications in which digital meters do not perform very well.
Sanwa calls the EM7000 a FET multitester, not a multimeter which differentiates it from the standard VOM multimeter. FET is the acronym for Field Effect Transistor, which has the very high impedance and other characteristics very similar to a triode vacuum tube. A FET is commonly used as a voltage amplifier just like vacuum tube were, versus the PNP and NPN junction transistors being used as current amplifiers. Several decades ago it was much easier to find FET multitesters as a number of companies made them. Even Radio Shack had one under the Micronta name. Today, this is about the only one on the market.
What makes a FET multimeter special? It is the battery powered solid state equivalent of a VTVM (Vacuum Tube Volt Meter), which graced the bench of anyone doing serious electronics work through the 1970's. The VTVM contained a triode vacuum tube, hence its name. My father had a very nice Heathkit VTVM, which I used in my high school years before moving out shortly after graduation. You'll note it has a power switch, not something found on analog VOMs. Its internal electronics, which use a FET, must be powered up. It has an internal 9 VDC battery of the common type found in battery powered household smoke alarms.
The reason for a VTVM and now a FET multitester:
A VOM is rated (among other specs) for how much internal resistance it presents in ohms per volt. To measure voltage, it must insert itself into the circuit using passive resistors (which ones depend on meter range setting) and create a voltage drop that moves a very sensitive meter. On many circuits the meter resistance is minuscule small compared to the circuit impedance and creating a minuscule voltage drop that won't make a measurable difference in 3 significant digit measurements. On extremely high impedance circuits, however, the VOM resistance start to become significant compared to the circuit impedance, resulting in a measurement that is lower than what it is without the meter inserted into the circuit. A VTVM or FET multimeter uses a massively higher resistance (ohms per volt) compared to a VOM. The VTVM uses a triode vacuum tube, or in its solid state equivalent, a FET to amplify the extremely small voltage to one that will drive the meter. The result is substantially greater accuracy in voltage measurements on very high impedance circuits.
The following web page has an excellent explanation about the impact of a test meter on the circuit being measured:
Chapter 8: Voltmeter Impact on a Measured Circuit
The reason for an analog meter:
Shortly after hand held LCD display digital meters became all the rage in the 1980's, those who were doing circuit alignments pitched the new digital meters and went beck to their analog. A digital meter works by sampling a voltage a number of times per second and updating the display a number of times per second. It's fast enough you normally don't see any flickering. However, when adjusting a trimmer capacitor or resistor (aka potentiometer) in a circuit calibration or alignment, the numbers displayed on a digital meter starts to jump around and one must significantly slow the adjustment or keep stopping to let the display settle on a value. An analog meter needle is damped and will swing smoothly as the adjustment is made. Much, much easier to follow visually than a numeric display with the numbers flickering between different values. The blue scale with the zero in the middle is a "null" scale. The meter can be set up after it's turned on so that the needle is centered for DC voltage or current measurements. The range settings for it are in matching blue around the switch positions for DC voltage and current range settings. One example of its use (and there are others) is in logic circuitry that has logic voltages above and below ground. The alternative would be a reversing switch like that found on a Triplett 310-C VOM. This is much more convenient than flipping a switch or the more cumbersome switching which probe is attached to circuit neutral or ground. Some alignments require centering on a null, or zero DC voltage or current flow. The null scale and setting the meter up for it allows that as well and allows great sensitivity. In addition, extreme precision with theoretically zero impact on a circuit can be set up with a null measurement meter. The tail end of the web page above shows how a meter with a null measurement capability can be set up with some additional equipment and components to do just that.
For those that wished they still had a VTVM for its special measurement characteristics, Sanwa is the only company I found currently making a battery powered solid state FET multitester. Much more portable than the classic VTVM which is much bigger and requires the power mains from a wall outlet to power its triode vacuum tube.
John
Sanwa, the Japanese electronics company is not to be confused with Sunwa, a Chinese (PRC) company that makes dirt cheap VOM multimeters found nearly everwhere that sells dirt cheap multimeters in North America. Oh, those clever Chinese and their product names that look and sound so similar to other companies whose high quality products sell for about 10x the price.
Sanwa is better known in North America for its radio controlled hobby control electronics. They do not market their electrical measuring instruments here. They have two entire lines of multimeters/multitesters, one analog like this one and the other digital. Their multimeter lines are very well known in the Pacific Rim, including the Philippines. I've seen some presence in Europe but don't know how widespread that is. Analog meters are still in demand and have a number of applications in which digital meters do not perform very well.
Sanwa calls the EM7000 a FET multitester, not a multimeter which differentiates it from the standard VOM multimeter. FET is the acronym for Field Effect Transistor, which has the very high impedance and other characteristics very similar to a triode vacuum tube. A FET is commonly used as a voltage amplifier just like vacuum tube were, versus the PNP and NPN junction transistors being used as current amplifiers. Several decades ago it was much easier to find FET multitesters as a number of companies made them. Even Radio Shack had one under the Micronta name. Today, this is about the only one on the market.
What makes a FET multimeter special? It is the battery powered solid state equivalent of a VTVM (Vacuum Tube Volt Meter), which graced the bench of anyone doing serious electronics work through the 1970's. The VTVM contained a triode vacuum tube, hence its name. My father had a very nice Heathkit VTVM, which I used in my high school years before moving out shortly after graduation. You'll note it has a power switch, not something found on analog VOMs. Its internal electronics, which use a FET, must be powered up. It has an internal 9 VDC battery of the common type found in battery powered household smoke alarms.
The reason for a VTVM and now a FET multitester:
A VOM is rated (among other specs) for how much internal resistance it presents in ohms per volt. To measure voltage, it must insert itself into the circuit using passive resistors (which ones depend on meter range setting) and create a voltage drop that moves a very sensitive meter. On many circuits the meter resistance is minuscule small compared to the circuit impedance and creating a minuscule voltage drop that won't make a measurable difference in 3 significant digit measurements. On extremely high impedance circuits, however, the VOM resistance start to become significant compared to the circuit impedance, resulting in a measurement that is lower than what it is without the meter inserted into the circuit. A VTVM or FET multimeter uses a massively higher resistance (ohms per volt) compared to a VOM. The VTVM uses a triode vacuum tube, or in its solid state equivalent, a FET to amplify the extremely small voltage to one that will drive the meter. The result is substantially greater accuracy in voltage measurements on very high impedance circuits.
The following web page has an excellent explanation about the impact of a test meter on the circuit being measured:
Chapter 8: Voltmeter Impact on a Measured Circuit
The reason for an analog meter:
Shortly after hand held LCD display digital meters became all the rage in the 1980's, those who were doing circuit alignments pitched the new digital meters and went beck to their analog. A digital meter works by sampling a voltage a number of times per second and updating the display a number of times per second. It's fast enough you normally don't see any flickering. However, when adjusting a trimmer capacitor or resistor (aka potentiometer) in a circuit calibration or alignment, the numbers displayed on a digital meter starts to jump around and one must significantly slow the adjustment or keep stopping to let the display settle on a value. An analog meter needle is damped and will swing smoothly as the adjustment is made. Much, much easier to follow visually than a numeric display with the numbers flickering between different values. The blue scale with the zero in the middle is a "null" scale. The meter can be set up after it's turned on so that the needle is centered for DC voltage or current measurements. The range settings for it are in matching blue around the switch positions for DC voltage and current range settings. One example of its use (and there are others) is in logic circuitry that has logic voltages above and below ground. The alternative would be a reversing switch like that found on a Triplett 310-C VOM. This is much more convenient than flipping a switch or the more cumbersome switching which probe is attached to circuit neutral or ground. Some alignments require centering on a null, or zero DC voltage or current flow. The null scale and setting the meter up for it allows that as well and allows great sensitivity. In addition, extreme precision with theoretically zero impact on a circuit can be set up with a null measurement meter. The tail end of the web page above shows how a meter with a null measurement capability can be set up with some additional equipment and components to do just that.
For those that wished they still had a VTVM for its special measurement characteristics, Sanwa is the only company I found currently making a battery powered solid state FET multitester. Much more portable than the classic VTVM which is much bigger and requires the power mains from a wall outlet to power its triode vacuum tube.
John
Interesting info, thank you.Sanwa EM7000 FET Multitester . . .
Sanwa, the Japanese electronics company is not to be confused with Sunwa, a Chinese (PRC) company that makes dirt cheap VOM multimeters found nearly everwhere that sells dirt cheap multimeters in North America. Oh, those clever Chinese and their product names that look and sound so similar to other companies whose high quality products sell for about 10x the price.
Sanwa is better known in North America for its radio controlled hobby control electronics. They do not market their electrical measuring instruments here. They have two entire lines of multimeters/multitesters, one analog like this one and the other digital. Their multimeter lines are very well known in the Pacific Rim, including the Philippines. I've seen some presence in Europe but don't know how widespread that is. Analog meters are still in demand and have a number of applications in which digital meters do not perform very well.
Sanwa calls the EM7000 a FET multitester, not a multimeter which differentiates it from the standard VOM multimeter. FET is the acronym for Field Effect Transistor, which has the very high impedance and other characteristics very similar to a triode vacuum tube. A FET is commonly used as a voltage amplifier just like vacuum tube were, versus the PNP and NPN junction transistors being used as current amplifiers. Several decades ago it was much easier to find FET multitesters as a number of companies made them. Even Radio Shack had one under the Micronta name. Today, this is about the only one on the market.
What makes a FET multimeter special? It is the battery powered solid state equivalent of a VTVM (Vacuum Tube Volt Meter), which graced the bench of anyone doing serious electronics work through the 1970's. The VTVM contained a triode vacuum tube, hence its name. My father had a very nice Heathkit VTVM, which I used in my high school years before moving out shortly after graduation. You'll note it has a power switch, not something found on analog VOMs. Its internal electronics, which use a FET, must be powered up. It has an internal 9 VDC battery of the common type found in battery powered household smoke alarms.
The reason for a VTVM and now a FET multitester:
A VOM is rated (among other specs) for how much internal resistance it presents in ohms per volt. To measure voltage, it must insert itself into the circuit using passive resistors (which ones depend on meter range setting) and create a voltage drop that moves a very sensitive meter. On many circuits the meter resistance is minuscule small compared to the circuit impedance and creating a minuscule voltage drop that won't make a measurable difference in 3 significant digit measurements. On extremely high impedance circuits, however, the VOM resistance start to become significant compared to the circuit impedance, resulting in a measurement that is lower than what it is without the meter inserted into the circuit. A VTVM or FET multimeter uses a massively higher resistance (ohms per volt) compared to a VOM. The VTVM uses a triode vacuum tube, or in its solid state equivalent, a FET to amplify the extremely small voltage to one that will drive the meter. The result is substantially greater accuracy in voltage measurements on very high impedance circuits.
The following web page has an excellent explanation about the impact of a test meter on the circuit being measured:
Chapter 8: Voltmeter Impact on a Measured Circuit
The reason for an analog meter:
Shortly after hand held LCD display digital meters became all the rage in the 1980's, those who were doing circuit alignments pitched the new digital meters and went beck to their analog. A digital meter works by sampling a voltage a number of times per second and updating the display a number of times per second. It's fast enough you normally don't see any flickering. However, when adjusting a trimmer capacitor or resistor (aka potentiometer) in a circuit calibration or alignment, the numbers displayed on a digital meter starts to jump around and one must significantly slow the adjustment or keep stopping to let the display settle on a value. An analog meter needle is damped and will swing smoothly as the adjustment is made. Much, much easier to follow visually than a numeric display with the numbers flickering between different values. The blue scale with the zero in the middle is a "null" scale. The meter can be set up after it's turned on so that the needle is centered for DC voltage or current measurements. The range settings for it are in matching blue around the switch positions for DC voltage and current range settings. One example of its use (and there are others) is in logic circuitry that has logic voltages above and below ground. The alternative would be a reversing switch like that found on a Triplett 310-C VOM. This is much more convenient than flipping a switch or the more cumbersome switching which probe is attached to circuit neutral or ground. Some alignments require centering on a null, or zero DC voltage or current flow. The null scale and setting the meter up for it allows that as well and allows great sensitivity. In addition, extreme precision with theoretically zero impact on a circuit can be set up with a null measurement meter. The tail end of the web page above shows how a meter with a null measurement capability can be set up with some additional equipment and components to do just that.
For those that wished they still had a VTVM for its special measurement characteristics, Sanwa is the only company I found currently making a battery powered solid state FET multitester. Much more portable than the classic VTVM which is much bigger and requires the power mains from a wall outlet to power its triode vacuum tube.
John
I used to see these kind of instruments many years ago, especially in labs.
Are they used nowadays commercially? How they compare let's say with the latest high grade ones like Fluke?
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Reed Prince
Well-known member
I found this on the EEVblog forums:
"Hello,
I finally got my long awaited Sanwa EM7000 FET analag meter, direct from the Japan factory. Here's a mini review I wish to contribute. I have very little experience with these meter. After testing and comparing it to a Fluke 189 with superior DC averaging function, I would say don't bother with it unless you are like me after some nostalgic memories of playing with my dad's Sanwa meter when I was a kid. The Fluke 189 totally demolish the analog meter at square wave DC 10Hz and above, advantage for it's digital readability.
The analog meter wins for anything under 10Hz but it starts to swing quite a bit when it gets down to 3Hz. The Fluke 189 produces rock stable reading that matches the analog meter, for any duty cycle percentage above 10Hz."
I also found these two sweet meters at RS-online. Wouldn't mind buying one if they weren't £415 & £420.
edit: new Chauvin Arnoux C.A 5011 £150.00 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/382407979462?ViewItem=&item=382407979462
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