Like many people indeed my first tool was a digital multimeter. Not much of a story there… I grew up in the 21st century so I didn't get to see those vintage analog multimeters like some of the others have shown off here.  

I guess what is more interesting is my first oscilloscope. Not too long ago I had just been looking around the second-hand market and scored a great deal for an oscilloscope and function generator.  

It is a Yokogawa DL1520 and it was ahead of its time. It has many features present in today's entry level scopes like cursor and auto-measure, FFT, math and so on. The only caveat is that the screenshots save to a floppy disk but I read that I can do it through the RS232 interface too.

In this picture I do not have any probes because the original cables have frayed and I threw it out as it was getting nasty. I ordered some cheap passive probes online. I doubt I will be doing any high speed measurements (for now) so that should suffice.

A diy multimeter kit bought from a little electronics shop in adelaide. I was wiring my first car stereo and needed one and wanted to make it myself. Shockingly no pun intended it worked and it still resides in my garage though I've graduated to much better tooling since.

This was my first piece of testequipment.

Russian Standard

Good old Brick

Fluke 8060a Multimeter intially for working on the car, then fixing power supplies and computers and then later at college.  Replaced with budget multimeters after the screen died.  The basic multimeter is still one of the most used and useful bits of equipment I have

MY ULTIMATE TOOL KIT.

The tool kit I am using currently consists of;

DIGITAL MULTIMETER

WIRE CUTTER

WIRE RIPPER

MARKER

BREAD BOARD

SCREW DRIVERS

SCREW DRIVER KIT

BATTERRIES

TWEESERS (FORECEPS)

SOLDERING IRON

SOLDERING WIRE

SOLDRING FLUX

DESOLDERING PUMP

DESOLDERING WHIP

SOLDERING BOARD.

As a kid, I was constantly tearing things apart. Toys, household appliances, you name it. I didn't have any test and measurement equipment, but for my 13th birthday, my older sister went to radio shack and bought me a multimeter. That was the beginning of a long journey of learning about electronics for me.  For the first time, I was able to measure things - volts, ohms, you get the picture.  I used it on so many projects, I can't even describe them all.  Sadly, it did die years ago, but I would be using it today if I still had it.

The first measurement tool I ever used is fittingly the DMM, the workhorse of Electrical Engineering. I got it when I was about 13 or 14 and have used it ever since. It’s gotten me through my BSEE, MSEE, and is still the keystone of my home lab.

It was actually part of a toolkit I received as a gift along with a soldering iron and a few DIY electronic kits (like a wireless microphone playable on our home stereo system). The kits had all the parts and instructions, the soldering iron let me put them together, and the DMM was the linchpin that let me get them working by finding my many mistakes. Though I first received it two decades ago, it’s still going strong (with a few 9V battery replacements).

After its initial use of finding all the bad solder joints on my first electronics kits, the DMM settled in as a security blanket during my Bachelors degree. Most of the projects I worked on at that time were group projects done in the electronics lab. But then it came roaring back into my life as a prized possession when my company paid for me to go back to school for my Masters degree. They paid tuition but didn’t give time off so it was a struggle to find time to go to campus. My home became my lab and my trusty DMM was right there waiting for me!

Due to life events, I took the maximum amount of time I was allowed to complete the graduate degree (7 years!). The last year was a mad dash to complete the Thesis project without overshooting the allowed timetable. I was burning the candle at both ends, working my job all day and the project all night. Thankfully, my co-workers were understanding and cut me some slack during this trying time. Also thankfully, I still had my soldering iron and DMM from so long ago, so I was able to work nights/mornings/weekends without making the commute to the campus and lab there. Without that benefit, I never would have finished the project, or my degree.

Working on that project at home had the benefit of showing me what I’m capable of with a home lab. If I could do University quality research then, I can still do it now! Currently, I’m in the process of fleshing out my bench with more standard equipment that I need. The next two main items I’m looking at are an adjustable power supply and O-scope.

Sadly, the soldering iron gave up the smoke two days before I finished. I had to go on a Sears run 10 minutes before they closed on a Sunday to replace it and continue working. The steadfast DMM stayed with me throughout though! It still sits on my desk in pride of place as I continue to slowly build up my bench.

A multimeter

My first trace rot repair on an original Xbox was a big moment for me being new to repair . I had been told by fellow Xbox enthusiasts that this was the probable cause of my issue which was random switching off and powering on with eject . I proved lack of continuity along two traces on the board and the rot was also visible as tiny black dots . The rot was repaired by simply jumping the traces with thin wire and voilà the Xbox sprang back in to life , the sence of satisfaction was hard to describe but suffice to say I am now hooked on repair .

My first measurement tools weren't mine, but the marine schools I was training at to be an Electro-technical officer. I absolutely love oscilloscopes (especially the old type with fluorescent green waveforms). I even made one out of an old crt tv from a cctv room on a cruise ship!

My first meter was actually a mini fluke from Korea, not exciting but the only thing I could afford.