What would be a higher quality K type thermo couple ( sensor)

[JWFilips]

Ok I have had it with my Chinese K probe! Every time I use my PC oven I have to jiggle the sensor wire until I get it to read correctly then hopefully don't move it again! Now when it works it is dead nuts on but ! If I'm PC coating over a few days I Have to mess with it every day!
Just wondering if any of you can recommend a better quality K probe?

 

[popper]

Thermocouple Probes with SS Overbraid Cable & Mini Connector

Configurable thermocouple probes with metal transition to Stainless Steel overbraided extension cable and miniature connectors. Click for options.

www.omega.com

Not the one I got but similar

TJ36-XCiB-chb​

IIRC mine was about 50$, just lead wire, no connector. Have had no problems with it. It's 1/4" probe dia. with metal wire shield and spring support at the 'bend' from the solid part. Has high temp insulation in the probe shaft. Some just get several cheap ones and replace when needed. Nope, you can't fix them. Mine is just used for the melting pot as I quit using it for the oven but it did work.

 

[358156 hp]

I hads lots of thermocouple failures when I started with PID. The solution for me was to quit buying them on ebay and Amazon and buy from somebody who makes their living selling TCs and PIDS. I ended up with Auber Instruments, and quit using price as a primary concern. https://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=20

 

[Jeff H]

I have a mixture of K and J-type leftover from when I had a "real job," but I did buy some Tempco brand TCs a couple years ago when I got tired of fiddling with making what I had work. Maybe a tad cheaper than Omega, but Omega and Tempco are quality TCs you can trust. Calibration aside, the build quality is what counts for us and it makes a difference if the hot junction is hanging in free air, unmolested, or submerged in a molten metal, getting banged around a bit from time to time.

The TC in my pot is a stainless or inconel probe, but the one hanging in my pizza oven (for PC) is a rather fragile ceramic capsule encasing the hot junction. I don't remember which brand it is, but it was purchased as US-made and was probably $26 to $45. Even at that price, they were almost considered "disposable" in industry, but they are pretty robust for our uses, the quality of the wire and connections being far better than "cheap imports."

 

[JWFilips]

Thanks Guys
This gives me a good starting point

 

[Mike W1]

Another vote for Auber's. Good tech support too and they have a good Q&A also.