Sixlegs
Member
My Brompton came with the Shimano dynamo when I bought it second hand with the aim of touring and using it with public transport in my retirement (great plan at the time!). As I will almost never be riding at night, I have considered getting rid of the dynamo to save weight, but wonder how useful it might be for charging my phone once lockdowns allow touring again.
I will only be taking my iPhone, no computers or tablets etc, and mostly camping in out of the way places, so relying on being able to recharge in civilisation is not an option. I also have a decent power bank, which I understand is safer to use as a buffer between dynamo and phone.
My concern is the speed required to actually generate a reasonable amount of power. I am old, with dodgy knees and a loaded bike, so high speed is not going to happen, especially since I installed a 38/28 double chainring to save said knees on my steep local hills.
When I first started researching, I thought the Brimpton’s smaller wheels meant more revolutions = more electricity, however, I have since discovered the dynamo is not a standard model, but one made for the Brompton’s extra narrow axle.
So my question is: does this mean a smaller dynamo which = less power than on a standard axle, thus making higher speeds essential?
Is there anyone out there who has successfully used the Brompton dynamo for this, and if so, what charging system would you recommend? They all seem a bit expensive for experimentation.
I will only be taking my iPhone, no computers or tablets etc, and mostly camping in out of the way places, so relying on being able to recharge in civilisation is not an option. I also have a decent power bank, which I understand is safer to use as a buffer between dynamo and phone.
My concern is the speed required to actually generate a reasonable amount of power. I am old, with dodgy knees and a loaded bike, so high speed is not going to happen, especially since I installed a 38/28 double chainring to save said knees on my steep local hills.
When I first started researching, I thought the Brimpton’s smaller wheels meant more revolutions = more electricity, however, I have since discovered the dynamo is not a standard model, but one made for the Brompton’s extra narrow axle.
So my question is: does this mean a smaller dynamo which = less power than on a standard axle, thus making higher speeds essential?
Is there anyone out there who has successfully used the Brompton dynamo for this, and if so, what charging system would you recommend? They all seem a bit expensive for experimentation.