I work in a professional shop environment and being the new guy, all of the electrical diag tickets got passed down to me because sh*t rolls down hill. I struggled through the diag jobs. I ended up seeing the LoadPro in a tool truck flyer which introduced me to the voltage drop testing concept. I bought the LoadPro and started studying voltage drop while waiting on the tool. The new diagnostic training combined with the LoadPro was a huge "level up" moment for me as a new technician. It's an excellent diagnostic tool and will speed up the diag process.The book itself is a great resource and I personally am a fan of physical books to keep around for quick reference. The 181 Kit would be an excellent choice for beginners, although I'm sure even experienced technicians will benefit from refreshers or learning knew concepts.

this book should be taught in trade school , the tool is great for diagnostics as well . 32 years in this trade and will say i wish i had this at the start

Great guide to electrical diagnosis, useful in tracing electrical issues using voltage checks, and making it easier to find resistance issues by applying a load through a circuit.

I ordered a set of these for my Fluke DMM and it's one of the best things I've ever bought. Reading some of the reviews from so called mechanics that say you have to use your regular leads to do amp checks, continuity checks etc made me laugh. They are badly misinforming people. Throw your regular leads away, these really do it all. They function exactly the same as regular leads except when you do a voltage drop check. Pressing the button runs the circuit through a 25 ohm resistor built into the tool to ground, effectively replacing the load component from the circuit. Sure, Dan Sullivan can come across as arrogant but I personally don't have a problem with him, I enjoy his videos and I can say I've learned a lot from him. Some guys get butthurt and feel like their manhood is somehow threatened by him but he's a smart man and deserves a lot of credit. And no, I'm not a fan boy, I just recognize quality tools when I see them.

Ease of use

Warning- long read.I received this tool for a christmas gift. Prior to owning i used light bulb method to load circuit. This is much cleaner/easier.We all perform voltage drop tests. Probably more so on euro cars than others even though principal of wiring is same no matter whose emblem is on the car.The load pro has been out for while. But it doesnt get the fan fare it probably deserves because creater comes off as being a douche to most people. Personally, he doesnt bug me. But some guys get butt hurt over stuff he says. Mechanics should have thick skin from all ball busting that goes on in a shop so i dunno...Tool is basically set of leads that plug into multimeter. Lets you voltage drop circuit. After i got it, i did research on it and see people trying compare it to power probe. That is a bad comparison. Imo, they are two different animals. Each serve purpose, but to say they are same or even similar is wrong. Load pro would be better compared it to a homemade head light bulb wired inline for load testing than a power probe.Havent really had much use for it electrical diag wise up until month ago. In last week i have used it on 4 cars and im pretty happy with it. It has cut down on diag time and makes voltage drop testing quick/easy. For that alone worth the $60 it costs with wiring book. You can buy it without book for less, but book is worth the extra money for reference manual in box if nothing else. I primarily work on euro cars. I have co workers on Asian. Rare occasion we will see a domestic. Today was a domestic day. example of it in action from today- Co worker had this ticket and was getting no where. Had deer in headlights look. i jumped on it with him after buttoning up car i was working on. Maybe had 20 mins into it tops to diag/fix. Prior to me jumping in he had easy 2 hrs in it going no where. 01 chevy 2500 8.1l truck towed in no start. Check fuel/spark, no spark. Had crank signal. Pull up wiring diagram shows all 8 coils common ground that is mounted side of block. Check for power/ground at coil wiring using test leads probing grnd/12v pins on harness. Nothing. Put ground lead to battery, reads 12v power. Push button to voltage drop test- v stayed- power side is good.Continuity test to ground showed continuity. This is where co worker got burned. He ASSumed continuity = good. For hell of it i checked resistance and was on high side for my liking. Cant recall amount off hand though. Used loadpro to voltage drop ground circuit. Dropped from 12.6v to 7v. voltage drop 5v on ground side- not good.To explain it to coworker whom i was showing how to check/test- i back probed ground at coil harness on valve cover and overlayed to battery gnd and truck ran. Minute i removed overlay from battery gnd it died.At this point, i was left with following- either ground spot at block is bad, or wire broke in harness. If its solid at bolted ground spot, then ground is broke in harness needs overlay because not cutting open harness looking for broke ground.In the end, found ground terminal at block to look ok. Yet when removed it was corroded about inch up that when i went to twist wire to look at backside of ring terminal it broke. Wire was long enough that new ring terminal fixed issue. Voltage dropped it after the fix all good.In short, if you do voltage drop testing, this is an easy to use tool worthy of being in your tool box.

very pleased with this item,good instructions easy to use would recommend any mechanic needing some electrical diagnostic knowledge to buy this item

The ESI 181 Load Pro Dynamic Test Lead: is the Load Pro LEADS(180) with the: Fundamental Electrical Trouble Shooting BOOK (182)This instrument fits MOST Digital MultiMeters (DMM) {May not fit into all}The tool works on the premise of drop voltage, which CAN NOT be accomplished properly with traditional DMM leads!The results are absolutely not only easier , but moreover more concise and COMPLETEIt has the ability to test the WHOLE circuit , not just from point to point segmentsThere can ONLY be 3 results that occur: 1)OPEN 2) SHORT-TO-GROUND 3) HIGH-RESISTENCEThe book will in detail explain and help you HOW to intrepid & determine the results! and more!Aside from also being able to determine if the fault is in the positive side or negative side of the wiring of the circuitYou just plug them into your COM jacks: POS to POS and NEG to NEG , Then set it to Volts with auto being: DC VoltageIt is important to understand: this tool should be used in a STATIC state: Vehicle ON , BUT NOT with the Engine turned over!Then place the POS lead to the POS side of the wiring of the circuit and the NEG lead into the NEG side of the same wiring circuit , PUSH the button, then read the resultsI would refer you to either the instructions or the 182 book on reading the results, as it is important you do this responsibly and properly, ..........yet it is very easy!The LOAD Pro pays for itself in a few short uses and to me is an exceptional awesome, better way to diagnose electrical faults (problems)IT also, can be used on boats, trailers, house devices for electrical trouble shooting!This tool is a diagnostic instrument....meaning I recommend you respect the tool and handle it carefully, as you can damage it by dropping it or smacking it against something, or getting it wet or dirty!Even though I have had a basic understanding of electrical uses , the book is great it can be read all the way through, then used as a quick reference for MOST all electrical subjects, including concept, spelled out explanations, and some illustrations.The BOOK works on the premise of teaching and also easy referencing , which was created by an instructor: Dan Sullivan (the author of the book) 20 plus experience in instructional training in the trucking industry.He designed it to be presented in an easy understanding , non-complicated way!I am so glad I opted to get the 181 package with the bookI would strongly recommend BOTH the Leads & the book for any & everybody, who is willing to learn fundamentals of electrical subjects, follow directions, and use the tool in a responsible respective manner.The ONLY thing I would pick at is that this tool does NOT have a case to protect it (or IF you have no room or case with you multimeter)I am looking at LowePro camera cases to store it in currently, that have padding.In my opinion, this tool was created by genius! IF you own it and understand how to fully use it, you will realize why I feel this way.In my experience, this is one of the absolutely GREATEST electrical tools one avid DIYer could own.PERIOD!Amazon is the Best place to get Electronic Specialties Inc. instruments.For more info on the : ESI 181 LOAD Pro & Book , or Just ESI 180 Leads ONLY, or ESI 182 Fund. Elect. Troubl. Book ONLYGo to: [...] . see side menu on there home page { You can also request a color catalog, of all their products}I also have reviews @Amazon on: ESI 190 Relay Buddy & ESI 230 Short Buddy, which these 3 tools have proven to be a killer combo for auto diagnostics'!