Raptor Chapter

Anyone got a fuel tank for sale for raptor 1000,mine has come out in small bubbles all over it.also would the 650 one fit,thanks

You'll find they're rarer than hen's teeth, and undamaged ones even rarer. Mine was damaged in an accident last year and was leaking fuel. I had the option of buying one of the last old stock ones but it turned out to be unpainted. Here's a photo of the damage to mine: https://photos.app.goo.gl/RiMoGVnuSGfSg9z1A

I ended up getting it welded, filled and repainted by Hartlepool Radiators (including Cagiva decals). They also coat the interior with a special sealant to prevent the paint bubbles (caused by ethanol in modern petrol). It was £540 inc VAT.

As yours doesn't need nearly as much work I would imagine it would cost a fair bit less than mine was.

I dealt with Stan Lamb - email postmaster@fueltanks.co.uk - he was able to quote via email when I sent him a couple of photos and the plastic type (which is PA6).

Thanks I will give them a call if nothing second hand turns up

Hi, just read this post.
I've had a bit of experience of the tank bubbling on various bikes. The Aprilia Tuono and Mills R were prone, but any plastic tanked bike will be susceptible. The ethanol in the fuel eventually seeps through to cause the bubbles. The local Ducati and Triumph dealers here are recommending every "at risk" bike, to have the tank lined. The bubbling isn't the main problem, it can be fixed, but often the tank will go out of shape, swell and will leak around the fuel pump and not fit the mounting points for the tank.

When I bought my VRaptor I had it serviced and they recommended it, even though the bike is mint and the tank looked perfect. It's a good job they did, because when they took it off it was obvious it was affected and the bike has only done 4500 miles. The XRaptor is going into the shop for service in a couple of weeks and I'm having that tank done as well.

A friend has just gone through the process with an S2r Ducati. If the tank is bubbled but stable you have to strip all the paint and primer off, (I think soda blasting is recommended) and then leave the tank for six weeks to enable all the ethanol to evaporate out of the plastic. You can buy the liner kit for about £50 and when it's done you can repaint. It's not a cheap fix but increasingly it's the only option. The local dealerships use a kit called Flow liner. I still run mine on super unleaded as it generally has a lower % of ethanol just as an additional safeguard and If you park up your bike for the winter, empty the tank first!

This issue is the reason that many new bikes have a painted plastic cover over the tank. The bad news is that it's not going to get any better. New EU regulations are about to come into force to significantly increase the % of ethanol in our fuel.

If you are in the UK and not in Scotland (go figure!), you can avoid ethanol in petrol by using Esso Supreme 97. It is classified in the E5 range but the makers demand that they don't put ethanol in it, not least because some of them run classic vehicles. How long this situation will last I don't know, but all my bikes now live on Esso's best, having switched from Shell's Vee-power which does contain a percentage of ethanol. It will be best to quiz the internet to see if the above information is still valid. I do hope so.

Nick