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Where can I get DMM fuses in the UK?

Bart

pfm Member
Don’t know if this is the right place…. Please move if not.
I need a FF 250mA 600V (6 x 32 mm) ceramic fuse for my DMM and they don’t seem that easy to come by.
I can actually buy a new DMM for about £9 which is approx. the cost of a fuse inc. delivery (and a possible long wait), but would also like to restore my broken one to service as I don’t like chucking stuff away.
So, does anyone know a UK supplier who could provide such a fuse at reasonable cost and delivery time.
 
600V rating seems odd. Why ceramic rather than glass. without searching the www, voltage and body material may be linked?

That apart, CPC have a few that otherwise fit your needs for a few pennies each, most in packs of 10, but you will get a postage charge if that is all you want to order.
 
Unfortunately, post covid etc most component distributors are taking the piss on costs. Min order for free delivery £30 - 50 etc so if you just need a fuse or a couple of resistors it ends up say 60P for the parts and £15 delivery and "handling fee"! A few years back you could order one resistor @ 3P each from RS and it would be delivered free the next day.

That's a super fast blow HRC (High Rupturing Capacity) fuse but if it's only a cheap DMM just fit any 1 1/4" 250mA F (Fast blow) fuse.
 
I don't consider that good. Just rather less bad than many others. I'm used to free, for decades, until recently. And no minimum order.

Off topic and maybe a subject for a thread but it strikes me that almost every business of every type is collectively taking the piss by using the excuse of covid to simply increase the cost of everything. Sometimes it's due to the knock on effect... and sometimes not
 
Thanks for the replies… I don’t know why ceramic is specified, I imagine it’s safer in some way but it is a cheap DMM (with good reviews on Screwfix!) so I might just try a glass one as suggested, which would be a bit cheaper and easier to come by.
p.s. I remember the good old days when RS delivered next day for free - I knew it wouldn’t last :D
 
Ceramic is usually used for HRC fuses.

For decades both RS and Farnell delivered FOC and no min order price but then over the past 15 years or so there has been a bizarre situation where one or the other would start charging say £2.99 -£5 handling fee but not to trade customers, then it at times included trade customers... then not... then each would go back to completely FOC but not necessarily at the same time! I always just ceased using whichever was charging at that time.
 
Ceramic is usually used for HRC fuses.

For decades both RS and Farnell delivered FOC and no min order price but then over the past 15 years or so there has been a bizarre situation where one or the other would start charging say £2.99 -£5 handling fee but not to trade customers, then it at times included trade customers... then not... then each would go back to completely FOC but not necessarily at the same time! I always just ceased using whichever was charging at that time.

Yes, I have trade accounts with RS and Farnell and the small order delivery charges have been completely random for a long time now,you just have to enter the order and see what comes up.
 
The trouble is that when you or I order something like a single fuse -it takes somebody some time to process -throw it in a envelope/way oversized box -prepare and print the label and get it onto the dock or to the shipper. The assumption was we would at some point place that 100 or 1000 piece order which would add only 5 min. to this process and make the shipper some money . I am very lucky that I have two old fashioned B&M electronic parts houses within reach (a drive -but still within reach) - my guess is this is not the case over much of the world anymore. I would much rather pay what I owe for shipping and handling on very small orders than trying to travel into the future to make a $50 min. order for parts I may look at for the next couple of decades.
 
Indeed local places selling electronic parts are largely a thing of the past... there's an RS trade store about 15 miles from me but (I no longer have transport these days) they seem to specialise in the basics and more for electrical contractors etc than for electronics such as I do so pretty useless much of the time as all they would do is order the parts from HQ in Corby. When I used to do some work in Leeds Farnell was handy as it IS HQ and so everything available. Since post covid and ongoing brexit fcuk up rip off Britain I have to wait for putting in a good size order for customers gear in order to get the stuff I need for my R&D work included in the order and avoid handling and delivery fees.

Obviously Maplins is no longer but it became completely useless anyway unless you wanted to buy disco lights or a remote controlled helicopter... "1K resistors Sir?? oh we'll have to order them in from HQ, not much call for specialised stuff like that":rolleyes:
 
Obviously Maplins is no longer but it became completely useless anyway unless you wanted to buy disco lights or a remote controlled helicopter... "1K resistors Sir?? oh we'll have to order them in from HQ, not much call for specialised stuff like that":rolleyes:

or a big bag of assorted capacitors containing every size except the one you need :D
 
Ceramic HRC (high rupturing capacity fuses) are used for good reason in test instruments for safety reasons.

Typically they have a very much higher fault current withstand capacity compared with a glass fuse - in other words stay intact and don’t shatter or explode, if the test instrument is connected incorrectly to a high energy source, such as mains voltage systems.
 


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