Brief:
How many times have you forgot to bring a multimeter to a launch and found yourself scrounging one to check continuity or battery voltage? I almost never brought one and couldn't seem to justify buying a second one to leave in the range box. Harbor Freight recently opened a store nearby and I ran across the perfect solution to my problem: a $3.99 DMM manufactured by CEN-TECH.

Construction:
The CEN-TECH DMM measures 2.74" wide x 5" high x 1" deep and provides the following features:

• Functions: AC and DC voltage, resistance, DC amperage, battery test, diode test, transistor (hFE) measurements
• Fused circuit with diode protection
• Low battery, over range indicators
• LCD readout
• 32" leads with banana plugs
• 750 VAC, 1000 VDC, or 10A DC max input

I know you often get what you pay for and if I was using this professionally, I would opt for a 'name brand' device with more features. I will generally just use the resistance measurements to check continuity and either the battery test or DC volts features to check batteries. I am not sure how much use the battery test feature will be over a simple voltage measurement, but it might be more effective since it verifies the battery under a load. Either way, it fits my needs perfectly.

Summary:
As of this writing, this meter is still on sale at Harbor Freight. The newer version appears to be $9.99 and has a backlight, which mine does not. However, the point is not the exact model or the exact price. Rather, I wanted to highlight the availability of inexpensive DMMs from Harbor Freight, which are just perfect to keep in your range box.

Overall Rating: 5 out of 5