Greed was good, excess was everything, fashion was horrific and taking one of the best sports bikes on the market and turning it into a cruiser was apparently a good idea. It was the ’80s and every manufacturer wanted an American-style big bike for the ‘look at me crowd’. Kawasaki took their legendary Z1000, raked out the suspension, slotted in a big back tyre, added all the bling bits and of course the high chrome bars and then charged the customer an extra 10% for ruining a great bike. Thankfully times have changed and the beloved Kawasaki Z is being appreciated for the exceptional machine that it has always been. So, to get his 1982 Kawasaki KZ1000K2 LTD transformed from an old cruiser, into a slick-looking speed machine packing 150bhp, one man headed for the uber talented team at Atlanta Motorcycle Works.
The Georgia, USA-based outfit is the sort of bike shop you dream of finding, staffed by genuine enthusiasts with years of experience. The timber-clad building sets the stage, with plenty of amazing bikes sitting out front and even more as you walk through the door. And you’ll see everything from classic two-stokes, vintage gems and all of the best modern machinery. There are custom motorcycles absolutely everywhere, amongst a collection of super cool memorabilia, and whether you want sales, a service, a restoration or a full custom build, they do it all. So, it was an easy decision for Serop Garabedian to roll his ’82 LTD into the shop and trust the guys to make his dreams come true.
“Serop brought this motorcycle to AMW with three things in mind: Speed, maneuverability, and style. Once the project cleared the engineering and design phase and was approved by Serop, the build concept was moved to the teardown and mockup phase. Recognising that the original frame wasn’t suitable for the ambitious modifications he envisioned, we began by focusing on the chassis before moving onto the engine,” the AMW team tells us. Starting with the stock frame, the guys quickly fired up the torches to take the subframe off and then spent hours fabricating and welding in triangular gussets on all major joints to give the bike modern levels of rigidity and stiffness.
Before they were done, they also took 2° of rake out of the neck and completely gusseted and reinforced the headstock. At the back of the bike, a donor Z1 subframe got the call up and is perfectly integrated into the main chassis. And then to complete the foundation of the Kawasaki, a ZRX1100 swingarm has been customised to fit. Then the highly skilled fabrication work shifted to the body, “The original tank was cut at the seams and modified with a low-profile but lower-capacity underside, ensuring proper fitment over the frame tubes and maintaining sleek body lines. This meticulous work allowed for a seamless integration of form and function.”
The rest of the body comes together with the fitment of that iconic tailpiece and side covers, all made that much easier thanks to the clever fitment of the Z1 subframe. And to give the bike a rich racer vibe and enhance the aerodynamic profile, “we installed a custom American Dream front fairing, mounted using four in-house custom-made fairing brackets.” It’s all finished beautifully too, with the frame and swingarm getting hit with a metallic powder-coated finish for excellent durability. While the tins are given a true show level custom paint job that beautifully balances traditional styling and modern tastes. A set of carbon mirrors, and a custom covered gel foam seat add form and function, and the LED headlight and R1 taillight balance out the clever mix of old and new.
To get the bike rolling, the guys chose to use 17-inch rims front and rear, before bringing the suspension into the 21st century. “Custom triple clamps were crafted to accommodate 43mm ZRX front forks with new tubes and internal valve upgrades. This setup significantly improved the bike’s front-end stability and responsiveness. We added ABM custom clamp-on adjustable handlebars for precise control tailored to the rider’s preference.” Ohlins Blackline shocks are added at the rear and the braking package is all high-end stuff. Galfer rotors and rebuilt 6-piston ZRX calipers fitted with stainless steel pistons get fluid via Spiegler hoses with a Nissin radial master cylinder providing big power and a great feel at the lever.
That’s two of Serop’s main desires ticked off and with him wanting serious speed, the Atlanta team simply went to town on the famous four-cylinder. The cylinders have been torque plate honed, before accepting a full 1075cc Wiseco big bore kit, that all swings on crank which has received every upgrade you can imagine. Similarly, the head is thoroughly ported and rebuilt with bronze guides, and large stainless back-cut valves seat on a five-angle valve job. Web cams have been added and degreed to suit the setup, and for longevity, there are Kibblewhite valve springs, APE studs and nuts and a Grumpy’s custom 9-rail oil cooler with stainless steel hoses.
To get the engine looking spot on the external components have all been powder coated, with all new external bolts and raw barrels for a beautiful contrast. Knowing they were going to tune the engine for big power, precautions were taken with a heavy-duty cam chain, “along with a rebuilt, cryogenically treated, and undercut transmission featuring heavy-duty APE shift fork shafts for improved durability and shifting precision.” On the outside, the stunning headers are titanium four-into-ones from Nitro Racing, with an AMW baffle for a crisp sound. The carbs are the ever popular bank of Keihin CR31s with velocity stacks and custom filters, while an electronic petcock feeds the fuel.
And that’s just the start of the electronic wizardry that really transforms this classic with all of the reliability and precision you’d expect from a 2024 motorcycle. The ignition is run by a DYNA S electronic ignition system with high-output coils and wires. But it’s the complete custom NWT Electrical control system that is the real kicker. It controls everything, creating an ultra-neat loom, and running all the LED lighting with ease as well as working with the switchgear for flawless functionality. It even interfaces with the “custom meter housing, which holds analogue-appearing Z1 digital gauges with a GPS speedometer. It’s all part of the genius offered at Atlanta Motorcycle Works, who have delivered a stunning Kawasaki LTD, with modern technology in all the right places and a thunderous 125bhp measured at the rear wheel. Perfection, we think so.