Krazy Kat

Purists must clutch their chests and go apoplectic when they get an eyeful of Nick Moore's 1982 Suzuki Katana, what with its expanse of chrome and candy paint, not to mention the big-bore mill chock-full of go-fast goodies. The knife-edged Katana is considered among the most influential--and valuable--of all the '80s-era Japanese sportbikes, and most admirers of the breed would consider it a sacrilege to even update to a radial tire, much less transform one into a full-blown street custom like Moore's. But Moore, who lives in Kettering, Northamptonshire, England, has no patience for sacred cows. The first thing he did when he got the bike eight years ago was get to work building his version of the ultimate Suzuki sportbike.

Motorwork came first. The big Kat's 1000cc engine was pulled out and sent to Mark Fisher of Northamptonshire's Green Hill Racing, who installed a 1260cc big-bore kit and ported and polished the head for improved top-end flow. The motor was reassembled with a set of GSX-R racing pistons, racing cams and a bank of 38mm Mikuni flat-slide carburetors. The quad exhaust system that looks as if it was lifted from a new Kawasaki Z1000 was actually hand-built by the owner a couple of years ago. The motor mods cost Moore quite a bit of pub change, but the air-cooled engine now produces a very healthy 135 hp--more than enough to beat up on modern machines.

Once the motor was sorted Moore turned his attention to the chassis--which definitely needed beefing up to handle the extra ponies. Moore stripped his pockets down to some lint and a few Tube tokens, shelling out for better forks--lifted from a Suzuki RG 250 two-stroke racebike--and wheels and brakes from a Kawasaki ZX-7. Out back a heavily braced and polished aluminum swingarm from streetfighter experts JMC holds the rear wheel steady. Moore also polished the engine cases and applied deep-purple metalflake paint.

Moore rides with Disturbing The Peace, a U.K.-based sportbike group that breathes life back into older sportbikes most of us would leave for dead in the parts salvage yard. "I've had this bike since year dot and I don't see any need to buy the latest greatest just because everybody else does," Moore says. "Anyways, it's fun to embarrass GSX-R1000 jockeys on a bike this old." And we're pretty sure that riding this Klass Katana beats the heck out of admiring it from behind a pane of glass.