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I had an expanded Ducati tank that I put out in our all glass " sun room" this summer..especially on those 100 deg plus days...it is unbearable hot.. I washed it with dish soap first then sat it on a stool for about 2 months during July August turning it over every day..I know it was way over 125 most days. On some days I even stuck a small hair dryer on low inside the fill hole and let it blow thru to the fuel pump hole for hours ( remember I thoroughly washed it with hot water and soap first and blew it out with the compressor) It came down nicely..it looks and fits great , like new now..I've done the same with 2 Aprilia tanks in past years. This time I also put a big sock filled with silica beads inside..not sure if it helped. I've done about 6 Ducati and Aprilia tanks over the years..some I left off and hung on the garage wall for 3-5 months after washing with dish soap...all shrunk down fine for me.

My experience is to run the tank down as low as possible before removing, and after removing just drain / pour out whatever fuel is left. I think it is better to let the tank sit empty. Also, a number of people have reported their tanks "shrinking" back to normal size if left to sit empty. As noted by docc, a good idea is to let it sit over a saw horse or other set up that mimics the mounting. After letting ours sit empty over winter it shrank back to a more normal size. I then used an epoxy tank coating to hopefully better seal it. Time will tell if that works out better or worse.

__Jason

2001 V11 Sport TT for sale, This is one of the 15 designated "TT"s that were put out in the U.S. only as part of the U.S. import for sales. EXTRAS carbon fiber M4 exhaust CRG brake and clutch levers custom bar end weights with Rizoma mirrors. (as part of my "hobby" I work with a machinist and design parts for bikes that the market no longer really supports or never supported to a great detail. I have designed about 12 - 14 parts for my Buells and Guzzis. these bar ends are modeled after the factory weights and thread into the bars like the OEM weights but are stepped to accept the Rizoma mirrors and have an o-ring in a channel to hold the mirror while you adjust it before tightening it.) Mileage: 13733 asking price: $5,500.00

When planning for a tank-off on the V11, I run the fuel level as low as possible and prepare a place to set the tank (a saw horse works great to keep the pressure off the bottom of the tank which may spread it more). I have also found keeping the tank the same temperature while it is off has introduced less distortion. I have had consistent results with the ratchet strap, but compress gradually and gently. The various methods to reinstall are detailed here:

It sounds dangerous, but has anyone heated an empty tank to maybe 125º for some time (hours or days) to take advantage of the "plastic memory" effect? If there is a crash-damaged tank out there, it would be interesting to see if this had any effect.

I've never even *seen* a Motoplat. There just may be a reason for that..

Years ago I was a motorcycle courier in DC. They have a number of mini tunnels, where one road might go under a traffic circle or under the mall for a couple blocks. It was common to clutch it and rev your engine under there. One of the other guys timed his so that he clutched it, rev'ed the engine on his FZ750, and keyed the mic on his radio. So everyone else heard this loud rev'ing noise over the radio. I thought it was hysterical, but the management was not amused. Long after, it is still hard to resist a few blips of throttle when going through tunnels. But usually I clutch it and blip the throttle so there is no change of speed. Good luck with the MV. Is it an original MV or one of the new MV's. I enjoy the original ones, used to race twins with AHRMA and seeing the old MVs that Team Obsolete would bring out was great fun. Sharing the track with them was awesome, but seriously loud.

Thanks Footgoose. I have the problem with the resin tank on my MZ. Draining it and leaving it empty in the garage over the winter did not help. I'm glad that the Guzzi tank "shrunk' back for you. I'll probably take it off right before it goes on the stand for the winter and put the tank in the attic to dry and shrink. Kane: pretty standard stuff for these plastic tanks of a certain age. Some of the MZ guys report paint cracking but there are no reports of the actual tank cracking as far as I know. I just don't bolt the MZ tank down anymore.

Another of my Grandfathers old tools. I've had it for years all covered in surface rust awaiting a refurb which I got around to last week. The bluing didnt turn out perfectly but thats ok as it adds to the patina a little. I believe its for use as a marking out tool on a surface plate? Chuck might be able to fill in the details? Starrett made in England and I'd guess somewhere around 75 years old, maybe more. Ciao

the tank will get longer while it's off. 2-10mm. I had my tank off a couple years ago while doing a lot of work through the winter, maybe 6 months, drained of gas, and it went back on fine, so they do move back some. I had it off this spring for one day and it lengthened about 4mm. Likely depends on regional fuels. I've used wood blocks as leverage, a big phillips to align the bolt hole, it's a pita but has to be done. The po of my parts bike welded the nut mount back further to the rear. Some use a ratchet strap, which I did last time and it worked ok. All in all I'd say my tank is not as stretched now as it once was. Weird I know, but I can tell from the distance at the seat body front mount. It used to touch there years ago.

Winner,winner chicken dinner to me. Ciao

It looks like a capacitor. Ciao

It´s time to listen to some Van Halen now. Eddie has died of cancer ...damn R.I.P. Eddie

I used to ride with a mate that had a 1995 model 900ss. It could pull away from me when accelerating from low speed. As soon as I hit around 5-6k rpm the 4 valve took over. The 2 torque of the 2 valve helps it spin up faster than the 996 4v.