IR temperature gun (whats the best one?)

[Sodo]

Needed one of these years ago,,,, many many uses!

Any opinions which one offers the best value? Saw one that has distance measurement feature but its $500.

Any details I need to watch for?

 

[DFB]

How much do you want to spend

 

[Streetcar]

Harbor freight gun that I have is accurate. Can't beat the price

 

[kf4uda]

I have had this one for several years. It works great and has been reliable.

Amazon.com: Fluke RAYMT4U Raytek MiniTemp Non-contact Thermometer Gun: Home Improvement

 

[oldpilgrim]

I got one from Northern tool, pretty cheap.

 

[newbury]

I wait for them to be $19 at HF. I've got three now, somewhere
Get the ones that use AAA vs 9 volt.

 

[BukitCase]

I have one of the 5-6 year old Flukes, F or C is an internal switch, uses a 9volt - I've dropped it on concrete from about 3 feet, battery and cover came off - put it back together and worked fine.

Earlier HF one with two buttons and trigger, remembers which (F or C) you had last - no longer available. Rats...

3 of the current crop of 1 button versions, have to push the button after you turn it on EVERY TIME, or it will read in C.

Used to have 4 of those, don't recommend dropping them on ANYTHING (ever play the game "operation" ? And yes, the patient DIED...

No complaints about accuracy, and at $25 on sale the HF is hard to beat.

All but the pretty expensive ones are fixed emissivity, meaning they will read closer to actual temp on some materials than others. Shiny or dull, clean or rusty, flat black or gloss yellow, all can make a difference from an actual contact thermocouple reading - but usually not much, and if your usage is typical you'll be looking for temp DIFFERENCES more than actual.

Most seem to have either 10:1 or 12:1 beam, meaning that if you are 10" (or 12", depending) away, the target area will be 1" dia. - This can really screw you up for some things, so it's important to keep in mind. (Hint - just because the LASER dot is 3/8" across, does NOT mean that's all you're measuring )

I got more, but you probably won't be buying the $5000 instruments it applies to... Steve

 

[George2615]

I have 2 IR temperature guns. Both have the laser light to measure temp. on a specific point. The first one I bought it 2001 for use at work. It is a Raytek model ST3LX. I don't think that model is made anymore (NLA through Grainger's). A couple years ago I needed a gun that would read higher temps at work so I bought a Westward model 6AUD3 and brought the Raytek home for garage use. Both were bought at local Grainger store and were under $180. each. They don't measure distance. Neither may be the best IR gun but both measure temp. very well and accurate.

https://www.grainger.com/product/GR...ermometer-4PD54?nls=3&ssf=3&searchQuery=4pd54
https://www.grainger.com/product/WESTWARD-IR-Therm-6AUD3?functionCode=P2IDP2PCP

 

[Threepoint]

I have one of the 5-6 year old Flukes, F or C is an internal switch, uses a 9volt - I've dropped it on concrete from about 3 feet, battery and cover came off - put it back together and worked fine.

Earlier HF one with two buttons and trigger, remembers which (F or C) you had last - no longer available. Rats...

3 of the current crop of 1 button versions, have to push the button after you turn it on EVERY TIME, or it will read in C.

Used to have 4 of those, don't recommend dropping them on ANYTHING (ever play the game "operation" ? And yes, the patient DIED...

No complaints about accuracy, and at $25 on sale the HF is hard to beat.

All but the pretty expensive ones are fixed emissivity, meaning they will read closer to actual temp on some materials than others. Shiny or dull, clean or rusty, flat black or gloss yellow, all can make a difference from an actual contact thermocouple reading - but usually not much, and if your usage is typical you'll be looking for temp DIFFERENCES more than actual.

Most seem to have either 10:1 or 12:1 beam, meaning that if you are 10" (or 12", depending) away, the target area will be 1" dia. - This can really screw you up for some things, so it's important to keep in mind. (Hint - just because the LASER dot is 3/8" across, does NOT mean that's all you're measuring )

I got more, but you probably won't be buying the $5000 instruments it applies to... Steve

Good tips. I think there's a learning curve to using them properly, and I'm not sure I've mastered it even now. I think they're especially useful in detecting temperature gradients across various surfaces (e.g., abnormal hotspots/coldspots), as distinguished from precise absolute values. For the latter, I'd want to have a way to calibrate for accuracy. I have a couple different types from HF, and they seem to work great.

 

[4570Man]

I have one made by Fluke. It is fantastic. It is rated for 3 meter drop test. I haven't ever dropped it 3 meters, but it has survived dozens of drops.