Agreed - instead of checking for continuity, go back and do all the same checks with an ohm meter. Your readings should be in the megohm range. If that checks out, the only thing left is a large capacitance between hot and neutral.
How far away from $50 are you? If I'm close, I just add on some low $ items like safety glasses. If you're registered (I'm guessing you are), shipping is only a flat $5.