Bottle Generator users
 

I'd like to know from those who use bottle generators on 406 tires, are there tires that work better than others?

As where you are has little rainfall , the hydroplaning may not be an issue..
NV Great Basin, generalization, Ski resorts are a tiny % of the state ..

I have Schwalbe Marathon Plus 406 tires, they have a narrow strip on the side
with texture to help Bottle dynamos.

Its wet too often Here so I went with hub dynamos..

I had an Older Brompton with a bottle dynamo, I quit using it. and just fit battery powered lights..

the drum just went zzzzz as it sat against the dynamo track, not turning, because of the water.

FWIW, B&M bottle dynamos offer the option of a rubber or Wire brush wheel.

That seems to be the default bottle gen tire; but I did a fair amount of research prior to getting a bottle and really didn't read much about tire issues specifically. Just the standard, 'get a tire with a generator strip. they all have them'.

Well, I'm finding out, no that is not the case for 406 tires. So that's why I'm asking on the folder forum. I have Kenda Kwests, and they have a 'generator strip' on the edge of the tire shoulder, BUT, I found out that where that gen strip is on that tire tread pattern seems to cause extra wear on the gen wheel.

You're right about my dismissing the wet wheel issue with the bottle here in Nevada. I love the light it throws and I really miss it. I'll just have to order a Marathon, although I have an Intense BMX wheel on my one bike and it appears to me that that sidewall ought to work adequately with a bottle generator.

I can't tell you what works best but I can assure you that tires like the Maxxis Hookworm with a wrap around tread are far from ideal. I had to machine a wheel of vulcanized rubber and adhere it to the metal contact wheel on the bottle generator. It's larger diameter dealt with the tread much better and also reduced the tire diameter/generator ratio to reduce the drag a little and keep the voltage of the generator down to acceptable levels when running 406s at speed. I run DIY LED head/tail lights so I also had to include an ICVR (up to 35v in, 5v out), just in case, to keep my LEDs from burning out. Keep in mind that bottle generators are normally intended for use on larger wheels.

Interesting. I'm asking this question because after doing, I felt, quite a bit of reading I never came across any mention that there were few (so far essentially one, Marathon) 406 tires that work with a bottle generator and I'm a little surprised. The shop owner I bought the generator from had a generator on a different swb 'bent with 406 tires, so I didn't expect an issue. I certainly never came across horror stories and comments saying, 'No! don't get a bottle generator with a 406 tire' anywhere.

I'm not giving up, but I've been surprised at the issues I've come across so far. I just feel the Marathons are spendy pig tires; but apparently I need to consider putting one on whatever rim I settle on running my generator and rolling down the road.

Your experience with the Hookworm tire sounds like you had similar issues with the tread breaks as I'm having with the ones that are on the Kwests I'm running and them eating up generator wheels.

The size of the bicycle wheel doesn't matter with a bottle dynamo. The tire tread moves past the dynamo wheel at the speed of the bicycle over the road so this speed is independent of the tire diameter. (OTOH, a hub dynamo should be designed for a particular rim/tire size since a smaller tire will spin at higher rpms for the same bike speed.)

I use fairly slick tires and have always positioned the dynamo wheel to run on the regular tread part of the tire, not on the sidewall (never had any tires with a generator strip on the sidewall). Haven't had any issues with getting enough light under rainy conditions, but snow and ice did cause problems.

Of course, raising the radius height of the dynamo to where it comes down on the tire tread edge can function too..

Was a Trainer stand that rolled on the rim... where the brakes grip,
perhaps a clever adaptation of that idea might net a drive for the bottle dynamo,
that works on the rim, no matter what tire..

You're right... I had a recurring senior moment.