Supco MFD10 Digital Capacitor Tester with LED Display, 0.01 to 10000mF Range, 5% Accuracy

An excellent piece of equipment to have in troubleshooting HVAC or other electronic equipment. Excellent small size and easy to use. Simple directions and very functional.

great value.

A LITTLE DIFFERENT BUT WORKS.

Needs to read in tenths to be any good.

I just received a Supco MFD10 from Amazon this last week. The product was as described, though I think it should be made clearer in the description that the alligator lead clips are hard connected to the device. There is a back panel that slides off (where the 9V battery is stored with normal 9V connector) and at the top of the unit the red & black leads are connected and stored. The space under the panel is VERY tight. The leads are only a few inches long. This works fine, but I worry in time about the clips breaking and having to figure out how to replace them. It would have been better if Amazons description specifically stated they were included AND hard connected to the unit, etc. (I will try to update with pictures.) Amazon lists the ranges as 0.01 to 10000mF. When they say mF, they mean microfarad (usually µF or uF). The product package clearly/correctly labels the range .01 µF to 10,000 µF. The unit also feels a little cheap. I had seen one at the HVAC parts store (used by the employees) and remember it being a very high quality unit. However, mine seems/feels very cheaply made. I found a copy of the 2008 insert (Rev 021108) and they used to be made in the USA, however, mine says Made in SUPCO Ningbo, China (Rev 03012011) which might explain the decrease in quality. The button pops/cracks when you push it (though it works, it is just a push down on a single small button on the main circuit). The switch to select the range is very hard to move up and down (is just a simple switch passing through the top panel from the main circuit board). The back panel (as mentioned) is very tight. When I put in the 9V battery and tried closing the panel it is REALLY tight, so much the battery actually pushes the panel up 1-2 millimeters on the bottom of the unit. I tested the unit on three run capacitors. One was a known bad (open) 7.5 µF capacitor and the unit read correctly. The other was a brand new 7.5 µF capacitor and the unit read it correctly. The third was an unknown state, 5 µF labeled capacitor and it read that one with less confidence (reading would change each time I did it). I also noticed on the known good cap the reading changed a little bit as well (each time on a different button push). So accuracy may be questioned. Amazons listing says +/- 5%, however, the unit packaging does not mention that anywhere. Once I took an average of the normal (excluding the wild outlier readings) on the known good 7.5 µF cap, the accuracy was within .06% (but I will have to remember not to just accept the first reading... and to wait a little bit for the readings to steady before accepting them). I wish the unit specifically stated OPEN & SHORT; instead it displays 8.888 & 7777 (or # changing constantly). This is just the normal operation/design of the meter (limited by the LED displays abilities). I will have to see how long/well it lasts (I will update if I run into problems). It worked, so it will do. Next time I may consider other options, i.e. Fieldpiece options (such as the Fieldpiece CH45 Mini Clamp Meter or one of the other models even higher than the CH45; anything above CH45 includes capacitance). You might want to consider these types of devices (full DMM) depending on how you intend to use this purchase (I was targeting home HVAC maintenance/checks and repairs). The price was not very much different for almost the same or better features on capacitance (plus all the other DMM features). I should state that this was purchased under my wifes account (Amazon name newsymustang), but since it was mine I did the review under my account.

wrong item to big

Great product

Works great Better than using a multimeter

Perfect tool for capacitors

A multimeter can be used to get a go/no go indication of a good or bad capacitor. This tester gives you real values and is very compact. It also comes with its own built in leads and with two alligator clips.