problem reading current

I am a newbe, so please excuse me if this question has been asked b4.

Having decided to give electrics ago I bought a new multimeter.
I am having trouble reading current (I know how to!): The simplest circuit of a 9V battery & 1k5 resistor, my 25year old analog Laser meter gives ~6mA. But my new meter works a few times then reads zero. I tried a Maplins N56FU, this is exclusive to Maplins I think it has a great spec, but they don't sell replacements fuses 4 it & the 500mA fuse was blown (returned!). I also tried Maplins Uni-T UT58C DMM (3) and had the same problem with current.

Is this normal, or are you thinking I must be doing something crazy, I'm not!
If it is normal please can anyone recommend a meter that I can get spare fuses 4, at a reasonable cost (UK say £15 to £35). I want to build some simple circuits to learn about the 555 & 741 and that kind of stuff.

Thanks.

The fuse should not be blowing at 9V/1k5 = 6mA...
You are putting it in series right?
This is not normal your multimeter should not be breaking.
I dont know about in the Uk but a cheap multimeter here goes for 5$ CAD which is about 3£. Why pay over 15 when you can get 5 new multimeters?

Yes, in series. The cheapest is about £7. But without AC current (not sure if I need it) or frequency, which I would like I think. Maybe accuracy is an issue, I don't know.

ive noticed alot of what maplin sells is sold by cpc and cpc is cheaper.

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