BMW K 1600 GTL Project: The Builders

Harley-Davidson dominates the heavyweight custom scene in Japan: many of the top builders work on no other marque. But BMW has just disrupted that paradigm with its ‘Ignite Straight 6’ project: it’s given its luxury K 1600 GTL tourer to two of Japan’s most esteemed motorcycle craftsmen. Keiji Kawakita (Hot Dock Custom Cycles) and Kenji Nagai (Ken’s Factory) were previously Harley men to the core. So how did they handle the difficult job of customizing a machine famous for its high technology? With the help of Japanese journalist Tadashi Kono, we decided to find out. Keiji Kawakita opened Hot Dock...