A bulb is very good and can be better than a meter but if you want a meter for a bit more you can get a meter that does revs as well some good info http://thelatebay.com/index.php?threads/how-to-using-a-multimeter-and-testing-for-faults.4688/
a cheep one with tacho http://www.amazon.co.uk/Andoer®-Automotive-Multimeter-Tachometer-Backlight/dp/B00RT9LIN8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1426018827&sr=8-1&keywords=automotive meter
I have this one for the van: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0001K9UKK ...though it was a bit cheaper when I bought mine. It's fine as a basic automotive meter with tach/dwell functions for distributor & coil ignition systems. There's a more expensive model which also works on more modern (distributor less) ignition systems. I also have a Fluke 177 DMM for the day job.
Will get an automotive multimeter Maybe this one on eBay http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.view&alt=web&id=350244544293 I'll set myself some challenges and record my outcomes.
Some lads at work still call em avos, it took me ages to work out what they were on about when I was an apprentice
"Gottanavo" was a common cry for those in receipt of an unexpected belt. Still got my first Avo Multiminor a good piece of kit for the beginner. Within a year or two TMK had swamped the market with big glossy all singing all dancing meters at half the price.
You can't beat a analog display to understand what's happening it's a shame you can't get good ones anymore
I would agree a decent mirrored scale is easier to follow than a dancing digital. Maybe its why the Avo 8 hung around for so long...that and the width of scale available.
I seem to recall TMK (were they Japanese?) doing a multimeter kit that I build as a lad. As the markings on the Japanese resistors were mostly indecipherable, as were the instructions, it gave very odd readings . Every place I've worked, Fluke has ruled (as they should, having invented the DVM I believe in the 70s). Good to see them still going strong. They do have a bouncy analog bar at the bottom of the display for old-school folk. That rubbery yellow bumper case is the Sign of a Real Man .
This post is just to show Jake, a boy we look after, how a forum works. He is 7 and really really good at reading. He's also just pointed out to me that he is nearly eight.
TMK were indeed Japanese. Practical Wireless filled its back cover for months with adds for the various models, likewise most of the outfits selling radio gear in London were pushing them too. Never bought one myself as the larger Avos became standard issue until Mr Fluke came along with the DVM. A real novelty after seeing panel displays using numericators. The analogue bar is not so mesmerizing as watching a needle swing
