Alright, well, the question now is: what do I do with it? To be clear, the question is somewhat rhetorical; at the end of the day, I'll do with it what best suits me. I just have to figure out what that is. I bought it because I wanted a straightbar frame of some sort with a tank for a specific project. I'd be, in all likelihood, replacing everything else one way or another and completely repainting what I keep. But I got this thing home, and after looking it over, it appears to be all original and intact (assuming the chainring is correct). It even still has (badly cracked) Firestone tires on it.
At this point, I'd have a real hard time repainting it or even striping this thing down. But I'm not sure how to make it useable without disturbing its condition, not to mention that it means that I'm back to square one for my other project. I suppose cleaning and regreasing the bearings is obvious enough. What about, say, the wheels, though? I'm not sure if I'd trust them to ride on, or if they could really ever be trued up given the rusty spokes and nipples. Maybe the answer is to use a set of new wheels/tires when riding and hanging onto the OEM set for other reasons. Or perhaps I'm better off respoking the original rims and hubs. What do people often do in this situation? Then there's the finish - should I just get a tetnus booster shot and ride it as it is? Do people clearcoat over the patina to preserve it (I can't imagine it really adhering well)?
Like I've said elsewhere, a bike that can't be used has little appeal to me. But at the same time, I can't see restoring or refinishing this bike because of how interesting it is now. A bit of a dilema...