Well - the holder also has another problem:
When the iron is hot and the metal of the holder getting warmer it also seems to expand very slightly. This causes a quite snug fit of the iron in the holder which can even cause the holder to "stick" to the iron. When I am not careful while pulling the iron out of the holder it can happen that I am pulling the whole thing along the table with the iron
. This happened a couple of times - and together with the paint problem this was enough hassle for me.
My final solution: getting a Hakko FH-300 holder. Eventhough this was not designed for the FX-8801 it fits perfectly
. Tight enough to keep everything in place without the iron tip touching anything (there is also an internal metal frame to keep the iron positioned inside) but still wide enough, so I can take the iron out and throw it back in without any hassle. The (replacable) top part is made of some kind of solid plastic which seems to be heat resistent as well and there is nothing coming off. Instead of the sponge you can also put in a Hakko 599B "tip cleaner ball" which fits exactly.
In my opinion the original holder of the FX888D should be exactly like this - at least the top part where you put in the iron.