I just bought the 2200-20 and I’m returning it. It’s way too sensitive. I don’t like it. The wires could be reversed on an outlet and you wont be able to tell with this pen because it will start beeping from a foot away. You dont even have to stick it in the prong.
I’ve had the single range Milwaukee for multiple years and still works great! I don’t think I would consider buying the dual range based on your video, thanks. Bought a Klein last November and the audible warning already quit working, very disappointed in that one!
My favorite is the Ideal Voltaware. I think it’s discontinued but you can still get them online. Super accurate and not over sensitive like the Kleins are.
It seems that Milwaukee is now just making Klein tools in red. I just bought the Milwaukee circuit breaker finder as well as the dual voltage finder. I did read a comment on another video that someone stated Milwaukee hired a bunch of Klein's engineers. However, that does not explain why the tools all look the same. The only difference in the circuit breaker finders is that the Milwaukee has an LED work light on the end, and the Klein does not.
I picked up the dual-range Milwaukee back when I was a low voltage tech...sure sounded like a good idea on paper, where I could troubleshoot control cables as well as mains/supply, but I likewise found it to be too sensitive to use reliably. I replaced it with the Klein thermo version, and it's been solid with the one note that the D:S ratio is rather poor and requires the stick to be quite close to the subject for an accurate reading
I got a little over 15 out of my craftsman one from when i first became an electrician and the only reason i had to replace it is the batery was leaking and corroded it and now i have the basic klein
I have 3 I use through various bags. Fluke in video is pretty reliable and whia makes a good one great sensitivity bit bulky. The surprisingly good one is the santronics always on made in usa. Its amazing a company has made in USA electronics for low cost. I will give a shoutout to speary for the dial adjustable sensitivity model but having to hold the on button down all the time is a deal breaker.
I use the santronics for about 2 years now and am extremely pleased with it. Doesn’t beep but I actually like that. It’s slim and has yet to fail me. The sensitivity is good enough that I can pick out one live wire right next to another one whereas some of them glow/beep with anything in the vicinity. I can’t recommend enough to others
Years ago bought a Fluke NCVD... it worked very well, but within a mere week, and with little use, unceremoniously ceased operation. Found it came factory equipped with with ancient econobudget batteries that'd leaked to the point of PCB destruction. Other than that, it looked to be the real deal. Complained & Amazon replaced... first thing I did out of the box was inspect & replace it's batteries (which appeared new & leak free). I only have limited experience with these things, but _suspect_ sensitivity varies greatly from individual specimen to specimen.
I had bought a Kobalt NCVD from Lowes for the "kitchen drawer" a number of years ago and it has worked well. I use a couple of different models of the Klein and they work great. I bought the Milwaukee one a year or two ago for my tool belt and have not been impressed. A little disappointed for the hype.
I think you got a fluke in your Fluke....mine would have gone off no problem with a cable like that. I have found with some thicker cable jackets, it'll only pick up on the hot side.
Very sensitive tools. I prefer ones from uni-t, you can manually select the sensitivity, I have an older model with a potentiometer. There is one which can detect magnetic fields from relays, electrovalves. I prefer the low sensitivity, you can better diagnose different circuits. But every time I double check everything with a direct measurement.
I actually prefer the Milwaukee to the Klein because of the button location, kept getting turned on in my bag. I get a lot of low voltage signals myself, but I normally see a lot of ghost voltage on my lines and end up using “loz” or low impedance settings anyway to rule it out. The santronics is nice, but it takes some getting used to.
The Fluke one has been updated and mine at least works great. Yeah, it’s only a guide but useful to show a customer that their supply is at fault, and it’s not “your gear is junk”! I found this more effective than getting a meter out and showing them the voltage reading. 😂😂😂
i splurged on the most expensive klein one. i hate it it always randomly turns on and drains it's battery and it is so hard to just flip on/off. whenever i need it most it's always dead. i bought a cheap kobalt one while down visiting my mom to change a light fixture, and boy was it easy to use simple turn on/off loud enough to trace a circuit i think I'll get it for my kit up here
It's been great for me as well. Especially rewiring old houses over time with all sorts of different insulation on the wires and weird circuits (like a line that's fed by 2 different circuits, that was fun)
Maintenace electrician here the only one you should trust is the fluke i have not found another worth anything i had a milwaukee as i use there power tools and it beeps when your near it with no way of knowing wat wire is live troulble shooting i did have a use for it and cuz its so darn loud u can stick it anywhere near a plug or in a circuit and hear it at the panel ha but dont trust it worth a dam always check with a real tester!
I have the Milwaukee, 2202-20. Sure they are not durable and the button breaks off after a period of time the batteries also do not last that long because they have the LED that lights on, there is another model that doesn’t have the LED and last just a little longer, I have never had an issue with my Milwaukee given me faults Voltage, the only reason I like Milwaukee the most that no other one has is because I work alone so when I am looking for the circuit, sometimes the panel is pretty far and the only wand that has been able to help me with hearing what breaker it is in the room I’m looking for is the Milwaukee because it’s so freaking loud And the flashlight or LED light helps, if only the battery lasted a lot longer it be super sick and they fix the upper button so it doesn’t break
Electrician here. Myself and all the people ive worked have tried many over the years. The only one to use and trust is the fluke. Others are Way to sensitive.
These sticks should never be used to prove the energised state of an electrical circuit. These are designed to be a guide. Only use appropriate test leads/unit to verify electrical safety.
Only useful as indication, one should really never use or rely on these to determine if circuit is live or not. It's just not reliable enough as you demonstrate. Also depending on shoes you wear etc such things may give a different reading. Always just use 2 pole contact (volt) probes for absolute sane and safe readings. Here in EU Benning Duspol is the 'standard' or just 'duspol' became synonym for those testers. Fluke and other big names make them as well. Only real practical use for those contactless probe things are to determine where a cable has a discontinuity, if you cant determine it visually or cant bend the cable when connected to a continuity tester/multimeter.
I just bought the 2200-20 and I’m returning it. It’s way too sensitive. I don’t like it. The wires could be reversed on an outlet and you wont be able to tell with this pen because it will start beeping from a foot away. You dont even have to stick it in the prong.
I’ve had the single range Milwaukee for multiple years and still works great! I don’t think I would consider buying the dual range based on your video, thanks. Bought a Klein last November and the audible warning already quit working, very disappointed in that one!
My favorite is the Ideal Voltaware. I think it’s discontinued but you can still get them online. Super accurate and not over sensitive like the Kleins are.
I’ve got the Klein with the infrared temp sensor and I use it all the time servicing appliances.i love it
It seems that Milwaukee is now just making Klein tools in red. I just bought the Milwaukee circuit breaker finder as well as the dual voltage finder. I did read a comment on another video that someone stated Milwaukee hired a bunch of Klein's engineers. However, that does not explain why the tools all look the same. The only difference in the circuit breaker finders is that the Milwaukee has an LED work light on the end, and the Klein does not.
Wiha makes one where you don't have to turn on, and I love it. Haven't had an issue with it yet. It's also dual range.
I picked up the dual-range Milwaukee back when I was a low voltage tech...sure sounded like a good idea on paper, where I could troubleshoot control cables as well as mains/supply, but I likewise found it to be too sensitive to use reliably. I replaced it with the Klein thermo version, and it's been solid with the one note that the D:S ratio is rather poor and requires the stick to be quite close to the subject for an accurate reading
I've been using the same non contact voltage detector for 15 years, and itstill hasn't broke. The basic Klein Tools one
I got a little over 15 out of my craftsman one from when i first became an electrician and the only reason i had to replace it is the batery was leaking and corroded it and now i have the basic klein
I have 3 I use through various bags. Fluke in video is pretty reliable and whia makes a good one great sensitivity bit bulky. The surprisingly good one is the santronics always on made in usa. Its amazing a company has made in USA electronics for low cost. I will give a shoutout to speary for the dial adjustable sensitivity model but having to hold the on button down all the time is a deal breaker.
I use the santronics for about 2 years now and am extremely pleased with it. Doesn’t beep but I actually like that. It’s slim and has yet to fail me. The sensitivity is good enough that I can pick out one live wire right next to another one whereas some of them glow/beep with anything in the vicinity. I can’t recommend enough to others
Years ago bought a Fluke NCVD... it worked very well, but within a mere week, and with little use, unceremoniously ceased operation.
Found it came factory equipped with with ancient econobudget batteries that'd leaked to the point of PCB destruction.
Other than that, it looked to be the real deal. Complained & Amazon replaced... first thing I did out of the box was inspect & replace it's batteries (which appeared new & leak free).
I only have limited experience with these things, but _suspect_ sensitivity varies greatly from individual specimen to specimen.
I had bought a Kobalt NCVD from Lowes for the "kitchen drawer" a number of years ago and it has worked well. I use a couple of different models of the Klein and they work great. I bought the Milwaukee one a year or two ago for my tool belt and have not been impressed. A little disappointed for the hype.
I think you got a fluke in your Fluke....mine would have gone off no problem with a cable like that.
I have found with some thicker cable jackets, it'll only pick up on the hot side.
Very sensitive tools. I prefer ones from uni-t, you can manually select the sensitivity, I have an older model with a potentiometer. There is one which can detect magnetic fields from relays, electrovalves. I prefer the low sensitivity, you can better diagnose different circuits. But every time I double check everything with a direct measurement.
Agree the Martindale fd65 has a led bar graph so can indicate proper voltage Vs induced voltage. May only be in 250v versions as in uk
I actually prefer the Milwaukee to the Klein because of the button location, kept getting turned on in my bag. I get a lot of low voltage signals myself, but I normally see a lot of ghost voltage on my lines and end up using “loz” or low impedance settings anyway to rule it out. The santronics is nice, but it takes some getting used to.
The Fluke one has been updated and mine at least works great. Yeah, it’s only a guide but useful to show a customer that their supply is at fault, and it’s not “your gear is junk”! I found this more effective than getting a meter out and showing them the voltage reading. 😂😂😂
Weird my fluke goes nuts it’s really good and loud I’ve had 2 first one lasted 6 years
i splurged on the most expensive klein one. i hate it it always randomly turns on and drains it's battery and it is so hard to just flip on/off. whenever i need it most it's always dead. i bought a cheap kobalt one while down visiting my mom to change a light fixture, and boy was it easy to use simple turn on/off loud enough to trace a circuit i think I'll get it for my kit up here
The Sperry with the sensitivity wheel is best VD6505
It's been great for me as well. Especially rewiring old houses over time with all sorts of different insulation on the wires and weird circuits (like a line that's fed by 2 different circuits, that was fun)
Heck yeah, first time I saw a tool my company makes mentioned on LBT
I would've expected more from Milwaukee
Maintenace electrician here the only one you should trust is the fluke i have not found another worth anything i had a milwaukee as i use there power tools and it beeps when your near it with no way of knowing wat wire is live troulble shooting i did have a use for it and cuz its so darn loud u can stick it anywhere near a plug or in a circuit and hear it at the panel ha but dont trust it worth a dam always check with a real tester!
I have the Milwaukee, 2202-20. Sure they are not durable and the button breaks off after a period of time the batteries also do not last that long because they have the LED that lights on, there is another model that doesn’t have the LED and last just a little longer, I have never had an issue with my Milwaukee given me faults Voltage, the only reason I like Milwaukee the most that no other one has is because I work alone so when I am looking for the circuit, sometimes the panel is pretty far and the only wand that has been able to help me with hearing what breaker it is in the room I’m looking for is the Milwaukee because it’s so freaking loud And the flashlight or LED light helps, if only the battery lasted a lot longer it be super sick and they fix the upper button so it doesn’t break
Flir one works pretty well for me and has a flashlight
Electrician here. Myself and all the people ive worked have tried many over the years. The only one to use and trust is the fluke. Others are Way to sensitive.
stick with Klein or Fluke for Electrical
The single vomtage milwaukee works for me, but the wiha one is way way more useful being D.S
Your using the fluke incorrectly depending on the model
The concept that it can be used incorrectly is, to me, more frightening that it not working right in the first place.
Chicken Sticks! :)
The profile and lights are great but it's annoying, the button is dodgy and the sensitivity is not good for tracing live circuits in jct boxes
Test UNI-T brand ones.
Fluke owns this market, even though the their versions are still not very reliable. Klein are a close second. Everyone else's are junk.
These sticks should never be used to prove the energised state of an electrical circuit. These are designed to be a guide. Only use appropriate test leads/unit to verify electrical safety.
These can't detect 12V DC, or any DC. They won't (reliably) work in auto applications.
Only useful as indication, one should really never use or rely on these to determine if circuit is live or not. It's just not reliable enough as you demonstrate. Also depending on shoes you wear etc such things may give a different reading. Always just use 2 pole contact (volt) probes for absolute sane and safe readings. Here in EU Benning Duspol is the 'standard' or just 'duspol' became synonym for those testers. Fluke and other big names make them as well. Only real practical use for those contactless probe things are to determine where a cable has a discontinuity, if you cant determine it visually or cant bend the cable when connected to a continuity tester/multimeter.
Milwaukee should stay in their lane.....get out of Klein's way.....they are crushing tools lately.
A lot of this is because Home Depot is slowly dropping Klein and they need someone to fill the void
Milwaukee is 90% hype. Its like the iPhone advertising brainwashing you have to own this to be Cool and fit in with everyone else😅😅😅
True…but at least iPhone is a great phone nonetheless
I didn't know honoring a warranty on tools I broke myself was "hype".
iPhone is the best phone out of all the others I’ve had and I couldn’t care less about being cool. Milwaukee makes some decent stuff too.