Finally found some time this weekend to get back to the bike. Besides being a piece of vintage eye candy, I decided to remove the bottle dynamo to see what condition it was in.
The bottle dynamo is a small generator meant to rub against the sidewall of the tires to generate power for the front and rear lights. Although I do want it functional, it wasn’t high on my priority list of getting it working. My main goal was to check the insides for dirt and muck.
Surprisingly, the inside of the dynamo was amazingly clean. I only opened it enough to see how dirty it was (in this case, nothing), and since its good I simply put it back together. The roller (the part that is spun with the tire sidewall) seems to spin with resistance; it feels like it is regulated by a internal gear, so it repeatedly pops in and out, essentially its not a smooth rotation. This might be by design though, and I’d have to contact some more knowledgeable people to find out for sure.
I also found out that my tool bag fits nicely on the front rack. I believe next on my list is to scrub the dirt and muck away from the frame. I’m still working on things I can do for free, with my first priority being new brake pads and handlebar grips. From there it’ll be functional, and if anything breaks I can just replace it as it comes.