Silver Star: 2LOUD bobs Kawasaki's tiny BJ250 Estrella

A test of ability in the world of bike building is being able to turn the banal into the beautiful. It’s hard to go wrong if you have a Ducati SportClassic up on the bench—and there’s a reason you don’t see many custom Honda Valkyrie Runes. The streets of Japan are full of inoffensive and forgettable commuter bikes, and one of the most common is the Kawasaki BJ250. The little Kawa qualifies as a stern test for a builder, but after a session in the Taipei workshop of Max Ma, this one is almost unrecognizable. If you’re in the States,...