Inferred Thermometers

[Loren]

I was looking for more information on threads about inferred thermometers, or just more information on the different brands people use and thier experiences with them.

I tell you this is a great site for information! I just found a nice scale from a previous post that will be a big help for measuring ingredients. Between Pizza Making and Forno Bravo I have no excuses to make bad bread or pizza!

Loren

[dikemiya]

have you tried Harbor freights?

its cheap and goes to over 900F

ive been meaning to buy it...

harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=96451

[12gauge]

i bought mine at HF for 29.99 at the store last week & its 39.99 online.

[Loren]

I just checked it out at HF, looks like a good price. I may pick one up and see how it works. Are you happy with yours? Not sure how you would tell if the readings are accurate.

[dikemiya]

it seems to work good.  i has a blue back light so its easier to read also.

[12gauge]

i like it, not sure how accurate it is.  but i dont think it really matters.  precision is more important.  you want it to be repeatable, if its always off it doesnt matter.  what matters is if it is always off the same, so you can repeat your results consistently & find the sweet spot.

I just checked it out at HF, looks like a good price. I may pick one up and see how it works. Are you happy with yours? Not sure how you would tell if the readings are accurate.

[sourdough girl]

I think there are a couple of threads going about this IR at Harbor Freight... I don't deal with them, but hubby (the gear-head!!) does.  So, I asked him what he thought about Harbor Freight and the products they sell... he said he's had some good luck and some bad luck...but his first comment was (and my first thought was) you get what you pay for.  Don't expect an inexpensive model to be terribly accurate or last long.  And, should it break, don't expect your money back... store credit, yes; money, no.   The old saying applies:  let the buyer beware.   

~sd

[Loren]

I have to agree with Sourdough Girl. Cheaper is not always better, especially if you have to buy something twice. I have been shopping around for one for a while and have seen other thermometers that are over twice the price but they come from well know instrument makers. Accuracy is not everything but if the readings fluctuate then you will have problems.I just can not justify buying one right now. So I will be shopping around for a while. When I decide on one I will post what I bought. I would like to find a "consumers reports" type rating of them but I don't think there is such a thing for inferred thermometers.

Loren

[dms]

I have to agree with Sourdough Girl. Cheaper is not always better, especially if you have to buy something twice. I have been shopping around for one for a while and have seen other thermometers that are over twice the price but they come from well know instrument makers. Accuracy is not everything but if the readings fluctuate then you will have problems.I just can not justify buying one right now. So I will be shopping around for a while. When I decide on one I will post what I bought. I would like to find a "consumers reports" type rating of them but I don't think there is such a thing for inferred thermometers.

Loren

The problem with Harbor Freight -- and lots of other places that sell cheap Chinese made tools -- is that there's no quality control.  If you get a good product, it works fine.  If you get a crappy one, it doesn't.  There's often no way to tell, without buying it.  A few years ago, I bought three angle grinders from HF.  They were on sale, for some silly low price, and I wanted to be able to switch from a grinding wheel to a cutting one to a brush, and having three grinders saves a huge amount of time.  One of them lasted a few hours.  Another lasted some longer, but still rather short, period.  The third is still going.

[DieselAddict]

I recently picked up one of these for pizza as well as some things I do around the track with the race car.

http://www.extech.com/instrument/products/400_450/42512.html

So far I'm very happy with its performance.