Carbon Fiber Tanks

dirtbikefreak
Hello,
i bought CMT carbon fiber tank for my CRF450r 18 but havent installed it yet because some guy on the track tells me that because of the fuel in the tank, the carbon degrades with time and it might clog up the fuel system.
Is this true?

I was wondering how long you have been running these tanks guys and how do you like it so far, any problems with it?
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Grenader26
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Grenader26 12/22/2019 8:15pm
12/22/2019 8:15pm
I had a cmt on my kawi for two years. Never did anything special to it but always kept fresh fuel in it. Never had any issues.
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Ryan625
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Ryan625 12/22/2019 10:57pm
12/22/2019 10:57pm
Ive wondered about the longevity of a carbon tank as well. Almost pulled the trigger on one but went aluminum instead
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afk66
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afk66 12/25/2019 6:32pm
12/25/2019 6:32pm
dirtbikefreak wrote:
anyone else?
I’ve had a carbon tank for a while on a 2012. It eventually leaked due to ethanol in the fuel. I re-epoxied the tank with a fuel / ethanol recommended epoxy. Ethanol will eat away at epoxy resin is what I’ve found when researching what to do. I’ve since ran ethanol free fuel vp t4 or Sunoco 260gtx and didn’t have a problem after that. If I do a carbon tank again I’d steer away from ethanol for longevity. That was my experience my tank was a crm crf tank.
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FU2
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FU2 12/26/2019 4:34am
12/26/2019 4:34am
dirtbikefreak wrote:
how much until the tank started leaking, a year, two maybe or sooner?
Gesus, put the tank on the bike fill it and ride it. If the epoxy comes lose you will notice it how the bike runs. Don't cheap out on gas. Can happen with a brand new one and it could happen with a tank what is been used for 200 hours.

Enjoy ur carbon tank.

afk66
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afk66 12/26/2019 4:46am
12/26/2019 4:46am
dirtbikefreak wrote:
how much until the tank started leaking, a year, two maybe or sooner?
FU2 wrote:
Gesus, put the tank on the bike fill it and ride it. If the epoxy comes lose you will notice it how the bike runs. Don't...
Gesus, put the tank on the bike fill it and ride it. If the epoxy comes lose you will notice it how the bike runs. Don't cheap out on gas. Can happen with a brand new one and it could happen with a tank what is been used for 200 hours.

Enjoy ur carbon tank.

If I had to estimate was probably a couple years before I had epoxy issues. I just wanted to give some extra info. Quality of gas you run should extend the life of your tank. I’d also believe that from 2012 to now that the carbon tank technology has also come along ways. Epoxies are better, the layup process I’m sure is refined as these companies make more tanks. I’d put it on and enjoy as “FU2” above mentioned. Good luck and post some pictures, I’d like to see how the tank fits.
kb228
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kb228 12/26/2019 4:48am
12/26/2019 4:48am
Have you contacted CMT to see if they use a resin that holds up to gas? Theres an assload of different resins and additives out there.

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