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Thread: Major Tech MTD70T

  1. #1
    Diamond Member AndyD's Avatar
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    Major Tech MTD70T

    Well I've been looking for things to keep me occupied whilst I spend my third 2 week stretch at home in quarantine since March this year when I caught a glimpse of the last piece of test equipment I bought. There's a story behind the purchase which I'll share with you, well I've got nothing better to do for the next 8 days so here goes.

    I was in the third wholesalers on that particular afternoon looking for a pair of silicone test leads to replace the worn ones on my Kyoritsu clamp meter, it was the third time I'd struck out. I had no idea that three national wholesalers wouldn't have stock of something so basic. I was done driving around in hope and requested they please order the damn things, I also gave them fair warning I wanted decent silicone CATIII leads, not the no-name crap they usually peddled. They quoted R1800.00 for a pair of genuine Fluke leads which was way overpriced, even the salesman thought it was a computer error and I was just about to leave when he said 'Jesus, you can buy three complete RMS clamp meters for that price'. I told him that I doubted you'll find a true RMS clamp tester that cheap but sure enough, he disappeared into the retail section and came back clutching a box. Less than a minute on his computer he said the words I'll never forget.... 'four fifty'. After catching my breath I asked him if that was the time or the price, 'the price' he replied 'including VAT' as he pushed it across the counter towards me already knowing deep inside himself it was as good as sold. I politely enquired how the f@%k could anyone be selling a CATIII 600v 600Amp true RMS clamp tester for under five hundred bucks but alas, he didn't immediately have a definative answer to hand.

    Needless to say I bought it.....yeah, yeah I know what you're thinking but c'mon, for the love of all things holy, it would have been rude not to at that price.
    Last edited by AndyD; 14-Oct-20 at 09:13 PM.
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  2. #2
    Diamond Member AndyD's Avatar
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    And here it is in all it's glory;

    Click image for larger version. 

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    It comes with test leads, instructions and a soft case. According to the instructions it's also supposed to come with a temperature probe as well but, even after digging the box out of the bin and double checking, there wasn't one incluced. This isn't particularly surprising because the tester has no temperature range so I'd guess the same instructions are used for another model with extra features but that didn't stop me feeling disappointed like I'd been robbed.
    Last edited by AndyD; 13-Oct-20 at 10:58 AM.
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  3. #3
    Diamond Member AndyD's Avatar
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    First impressions were fairly good. It feels solid and the clamp has a good strong action to it. It came with two AAA batteries of dubious brand name but It worked fine out of the box. The leads are obviously PVC but they don't feel too bad and I've certainly seen worse with other cheap testers. The pouch is pretty good, it's lined, it's padded, the zip feels okay and the outer material is strong.

    As a general overview the tester's features and ranges, it's got continuity resistance range which toggles via the 'select' button to bleeping mode and diode mode. The continuity range scale autoranges between 200Ω, 2kΩ, 20kΩ, 200kΩ, 2MΩ and 20MΩ depending on the resistance under test. There's a volts DC function and a volts AC function that both autorange between 200mV, 2V, 20V, 200V and 600V scales. There's an AC true RMS function that autoranges between 2A, 20A, 200A, and 600A. There's a NCV function which stands for Non Contact Voltage where the tester basically behaves like a voltstick, it bleeps and gives an LED visual indication when it's in proximity of a live circuit. Finally there's a function that's just got a picture of a battery so I'll call it the battery function. What does it do?...don't know, it's not mentioned in the instructions. All I can tell you is it says DC 0.00V on the screen when you select it. How is it different to the manually selected 2V range on the DC Volts function?....don't know, it's not mentioned in the instructions.

    All the measurement functions can be used locked in manual ranges also.

    There are 3 LED's built in to this tester, one for the screen backlight, one for NCV indication and one that works in tandem with the screen light that's a flashlight to illuminte in front of the clamp.

    There's also a 'Hold' key and a 'Max/Min' key, how does it work and what exactly does it do?....don't know because it's not mentioned in the instructions.

    Finally the instructions... I already had a hatred for the instructions when they promised me a temperature sensor that I didn't get. Then there's the glaring omission of some of the functions and features. They are however written in decent English.
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  4. #4
    Site Caretaker Dave A's Avatar
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    Somehow the image attachment went AWOL. Here is a link to Major Tech's product page for the MTD70T instead.

    Quote Originally Posted by AndyD View Post
    Finally the instructions... I already had a hatred for the instructions when they promised me a temperature sensor that I didn't get. Then there's the glaring omission of some of the functions and features. They are however written in decent English.
    One of the reasons I love reading Andy's equipment reviews

  5. #5
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    Andy if you looking for a fluke clamp meter ... I have a T5-1000 for sale (asking R2500 ... but would let it go for a little less ... been used a couple of times)... I want to get a fluke 117... a nice nice small compact tester ... i am over the big 189 ... 289 ...177 ... 179 ... sold all of them.

    Looking at the price of the 117 ... I am thinking how bad could a small uni-T if you compare R6000 (fluke) to R600 (uni-T) ... i am all for fluke quality ... but R5000 better quality ... mmm ...need to think about it.
    Comments are based on opinion...not always facts....that's why people use an alias.

  6. #6
    Diamond Member AndyD's Avatar
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    Thanks Dave, not sure where the attached pic disappeared to but I reattached it now.

    Hi Ian, the T5 is a great tester but it's not really suitable for the types of panels I work on. It's ideal for domestic and light commercial applications but I need a clamp meter that can work with higher current ranges.

    The Fluke 117 is a very versatile tester, I use a Fluke 87V which I've had for donkeys years but they're a bit pricey nowadays. I also have a very basic Fluke 15B+ which I use for benchwork and board repair, it's adequate for what I need, it spends most of it's days in DCV and diode range. The only issue I see with the 117 is it doesn't appear to have a 'REL' function where you can zero out the resistance of the leads to make more accurate low resistance tests.
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    I carry a model 2417 leakage current tester ... 200 mA ... 2000 mA ... 20 A ... 200 A and 500 A in my test kit ... best alround current clamp and handy for testing leakage "currents" when touching neutral to earth

    I bought the T5-1000 for my tool bag ... but it didnt work out the way i was hoping.
    Comments are based on opinion...not always facts....that's why people use an alias.

  8. #8
    Diamond Member AndyD's Avatar
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    Okay, back to the MTD70T first impressions.

    The leads were a good firm fit and after setting it to ohms function the display sprung to life. I was initially impressed by the large clear digits and I marvelled at how easy it was to read.
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    The display has a backlight which also gave impressive results;
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  9. #9
    Diamond Member AndyD's Avatar
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    Unfortunately my excitement was short lived, when I moved the tester around I noticed that viewing it with the display tilted even slightly downwards the thing became completely unreadable. This is very disappointing with a clamp meter that's likely going to be viewed from this angle most of the time it's in use.

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    Yeah, I'm not exagerating when I say completely unreadable...
    Last edited by AndyD; 13-Oct-20 at 02:27 PM.
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  10. #10
    Diamond Member Justloadit's Avatar
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    Hi Andy,

    Check here Fluke Leads ex stock at a reasonable price
    Victor - Knowledge is a blessing or a curse, your current circumstances make you decide!
    Solar pumping, Solar Geyser & Solar Security lighting solutions - www.microsolve.co.za

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