Fieldpiece sman3

[airmate]

Hi guys,

Looking at investing in a fieldpiece sman 3 digital gauges. Just trying to find how they are surviving in the trade and how accurate are they ir have they got issues.

Any feedback would be appreciated :D

[monkey spanners]

I've not seen them over here in the UK but Fieldpiece does make some good kit.

We have some Testo 550's which we are happy with, but thats about it for my knowledge on digital manifolds.

Jon :)

[airmate]

Hi,

they are new here too in digital gauges.Field piece sell there Multimeters and other Hvac-r products here but digital gauges in fieldpiece are first

[DRAISLAND7]

Hi guys,

Looking at investing in a fieldpiece sman 3 digital gauges. Just trying to find how they are surviving in the trade and how accurate are they ir have they got issues.

Any feedback would be appreciated :D
They good in video but just came out, maybe 2-3 weeks ago so only time will tell. Fieldpiece does make good quality stuff though.

[chemi-cool]

Fieldpiece are high qulity products, their high price is most people's problem.
Buying high quality tool comes cheaper in the long run.

[airmate]

What about Testo 550 they have been around for a while.How do you guys rate them?

[hvacrmedic]

What about Testo 550 they have been around for a while.How do you guys rate them?

I don't have the 550 but I've read a number of reviews. Most of it's owners seem to be happy with it. Some have reported problems with the hook breaking.

I have the SMAN3. It's brand new so I can't say much about it yet. I've only used it on a couple of jobs so far. It seems to work like it's supposed to. You might want to wait and see on that one. Testo is coming out with a 4 valve version of the 550 with a built in micron gauge, the testo 557. Due in April.

[exotiic]

I don't have the 550 but I've read a number of reviews. Most of it's owners seem to be happy with it. Some have reported problems with the hook breaking.

I have the SMAN3. It's brand new so I can't say much about it yet. I've only used it on a couple of jobs so far. It seems to work like it's supposed to. You might want to wait and see on that one. Testo is coming out with a 4 valve version of the 550 with a built in micron gauge, the testo 557. Due in April.

Hvacrmedic, did you have to get adaptors for the hoses for the R410A refrigerant with it? I just received SMAN3 today and the inlets are for the 1/4 inch hoses for R22!

[NoNickName]

Testo 550, 556 and 560 are badly reputed. I previously owned a 560 for six months, and returned it twice for low pressure transducer faults. Much worse reliability than the older 523 which served me for years flawlessly.

[kiwireeferman]

The LCD window on my 550 has developed "stress cracks". Pretty piss poor really.

I believe it was the result of leaving them hooked up to an evaporator in a cool room for a couple of hours.

My digi-cool instrument just keeps soldiering on whatever I throw at it.

[Steve H]

G'day Exotiic,
Great to hear you have the SMAN3..these units are really turning out to be one of the most useful meters on the market.
We are supplying BONUS Imperial 803-MRS Hoses with each SMAN purchased from Aussie & NZ Wholsalers & extended warranty [AU only] out to 2 years. We can also offer the Imperial 853-MRS hose with it, these are 1/4"flare on one end and 5/16" flare on the other, which you can use on your R410a systems. If you didn't get the hoses, get back to the wholsaler - these are free with the SMAN........

Steve H
Fieldpiece Australia

[fmflex]

Hi

I bought a Sman3 digital manifold and absolutely rate it. It's seemed to handle the knocks from in the field pretty well and being able to calibrate the thermocouples out in the field with a glass of icy water is great.

The only drama which I got caught out on was if you're using the manifold to check pressures on systems and go to use it to evacuate out a system, it seems to struggle to measure deep vacuum. The only workaround I've found is to clean with isopropyl before using it to vac out a system.

[paul_h]

I got to ask, why would you buy the sman3?
It has a vacuum gauge, but it's not a 4 way manifold with a 3/8" line, so it's not really the ideal thing to pull a vacuum on any way. It's the same manifold as the sman2 except for the vac guage, but it has worse battery life...

[sneep]

I bought mine and love it. One tool not three to carry in. I thought I'd hate to give up analog gauges. The thing works the way a tech needs. Holds last refrigerant used etc. I used a Fluke 52 and compared the PK-80 clamp-on to Fieldpiece's. Thermometers and micron gauge works great. I do commercial primarily so 500 microns doesn't take that long to reach. I have that oversized Appion hose and CRT tool but no reason to use it yet. Question should be why you haven't bought one. ;-)

[ozairman]

Hi All
I have a question for the Fieldpiece SMAN3 users out there.

Can you please tell me where the vacuum gauge transducer is ported to?
I suspect that it connects into the central section of the manifold and thus reads whatever pressure there is where you would normally have your yellow hose connected to, but I am willing to be proven wrong if that is not the case.

I was out on site today witnessing some evacuations and this was the first time that I have seen the devices and am not in the mood for having the wool pulled over my eyes. Unfortunately the other side of Australia to me goes home early so I could not get in contact with Fieldpiece to confirm this and the local supplier did not know.
Cheers
Ozairman

[Mick13]

interesting.... when u find out, please post here, iv been looking at those for a while and am considering buying them.... but to be honest if it reads the vacuum from the middle hose then as far as im concerned thats useless....

hopefully its like a similar set of digital guages iv seen that read it from the low side hose, im not 100% sure but i think it was the refco digimon ones.

[MikeHolm]

Digi-cool just came out with their AK900 for $299 including manifold. Bummer cause I just spent $600 for the 1250 model.

[ozairman]

Hi All
I managed to get an answer to my question today from Fieldpiece Aus, so I thought I should share as it is worth being aware of if you are considering buying or using them.

Yes the vacuum gauge does read from the centre of the manifold which means two things:

To monitor system vacuum both handvalves have to be open.


Most importantly if you wish to actually read a true system vacuum and not just what your pump is capable of then you will need to install an isolation valve between the SMA3 and your vac pump.

Unfortunately 97% of the people who buy these and call themselves fridgies these days probably wont be able to understand the significance of this.

They did suggest a workaround of hooking the vac pump up using either the Hi or Lo ports and then using the centre port and other valved port, but this just seems like a kludge after you have spent all that money.

I would be saving my money for something with a Four valve manifold or just a standalone vac gauge and an inline ball valve.

[sneep]

Hi All
Unfortunately 97% of the people who buy these and call themselves fridgies these days probably wont be able to understand the significance of this.


Come on. Just because you don't own a Yellow Jacket pump doesn't mean everyone else is screwed up.
Most people on these forums actually know their niche of the trade. Save the derision for those who aren't here.
I'm sorry you are having such a hard time getting your gear together. Carrying an isolation valve and a micron gauge strikes me as the "kludge".
Personally I like carrying less. First and only piece of FieldPiece I own. Won't be my last and I consider myself to be a harsh critic.
For the price using one micron gauge through the center port isn't a deal killer or even a nit that needs picked.
This is way cleaner, faster and simpler than the 4 valve manifold and isolation valve.
You might want to look at a pump with a built in valve.