Professional_Tool_And_Equipment_News_February_2020 - 47

PRODUCT DESCRIPTION:

OEMTOOLS

Thermal Imaging Camera
The reviewer was impressed with
this product's versatility, temperature
range, and price point.
by Kayla Oschmann, Assistant Editor

The OEMTOOLS Thermal Imaging Camera, No. 24552,
is a compact tool designed to visually detect high and low
temperatures with both heat-mapped color palettes and
actual temperature reading. There are three selectable
color palettes and a 1.8" LCD color display. With a broad
temperature range of -4 degrees F to 1,202 degrees F, even
extreme readings can be recorded. Temperature accuracy
is +/- 2 percent. The easy-to-use camera displays and saves
images that can be reviewed later from a microSD card
(not included). A storage pouch with a mini-USB cable
is included.
Circle 109 on card, or enter at "e-inquiry" on
VehicleServicePros.com

THE REVIEW:

W

he n it co m es to
determining heat loss,
coolant loss, or other
temperature swings and variations, the
OEMTOOLS Thermal Imaging Camera,
No. 24552, goes above and beyond
in saving time says tool reviewer
Eric Moore, fleet manager of Griffin
Pavement Striping in Columbus, Ohio.
With a fleet consisting of a variety
of small equipment, Toyota Tundras,
multiple towable assets, Class 5 trucks,
and a Class 8 truck and trailer combination, Moore and his technicians were
impressed with how versatile the camera was and noted they found many uses
for it.
"The main use we found was determining mixture ratios for setting the
propane or diesel-fired kettles on our
thermoplastic striping equipment,"
Moore says. "We were able to see within
seconds any changes we were making
when adjusting the kettle flame fronts
and temperatures, whereas staring into
the flames, our eyes could not detect the
subtle changes in shape, reach, or maximum temperature points."
Moore also used the thermal imaging
camera for finding coolant or heating oil
leaks in the material lines that supply the
application guns, as well as places that
were losing heat through gaps in insu-

lation or fittings that
were not covered.
In addition,
the OEMTOOLS
camera has been
benef icia l for
Moore in preventing costly incidents from happening by finding small
leaks before vehicles
leave the shop.
"We have several
vehicles that use ultrahigh-pressure water to
remove markings and found
t he OEMTOOLS 24552
Thermal Imaging Camera
useful to pinpoint any small
leaks," he says. "Since ultrahigh-pressure water becomes
super-heated, when it finds a
weak point [it will] escape."
The camera is very easy to
use and simple to understand,
Moore notes. Setup involved
adding four AAA batteries. It
also came with a detailed manual,
but Moore says he was able to figure
out most of the features just by using
the camera.
With previous experience using thermal imaging cameras, Moore found the

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FEBRUARY 2020

OE MTOOL S c a mera to exceed others
in resolution, cost
of ownership, and
temperature ranges.
At the shop, each
of the technicians
who used the camera
enjoyed the temperature
range of 1,202 degrees F,
in addition to the picture
quality. Once a micro
SD card was installed,
they were able to store
images and then view them
on a laptop.
Although the images are
clear on the camera's screen,
Moore noted that they become
pixelated when expanded on a
larger screen. He would suggest either a larger screen on
the camera or the option to
send live images to a larger
monitor to make analyzing
the images better.
Overall, Moore found the
OEMTOOLS Thermal Imaging
Camera to be useful and of value to
his technicians. He says it offers a great
value, excellent temperature range, good
picture quality, and its versatility makes
this tool stand out.

PROFESSIONAL TOOL & EQUIPMENT NEWS

47
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Professional_Tool_And_Equipment_News_February_2020

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