Redcar may not be the first place you think of as a focal point for the UK custom bike scene. But this North-Eastern town, sandwiched between the giant steelworks and the windswept Cleveland coast, has spawned a good number of top class customs over the years and is called home by a growing band of hardened custom bikers.

Chris Holliday of Bike Tech, owner of this tasty big Zed streetbike, is a Redcar lad born and bred and has been spinning spanners on some tidy customs for a year or two. I first came across his work with a radical Suzuki GT750 exhibited at the Kettle Club's annual Blue Haze rally and doing much to upset the nostalgia brigade.

This Kawasaki is the latest in a line of customs which started with that Kettle, and continues Chris's preference for taking the very best bikes from the classic Jap scene and improving them with the latest technology. The end result, as you can see here, blends eighties street muscle with razor-sharp handling and big bruiser street presence.

This bike evolved from a donor bike Chris had picked up as a restoration project, first thought to be an original GPZ1100. Further investigation revealed it to be a 1981 Z1000J1, one of the rare early models which were both quicker and more reliable than later versions. In fact some would call this the last of the real Kawasakis, a direct descendent of the mighty Z1 from an era before namby-pamby sanitised water cooling. Chris stripped the motor to investigate the source of a bottom end rumble, only to discover that all the engine internals were in mint condition. The rumble was eventually traced to loose magnets in the generator rotor, something of an Achilles Heel with the Z1000J/K series and easily cured by bolting on another rotor.

Realising what a gem he had on his hands, Chris got to work with the hacksaw to deal with the stock bikes dated suspension and brakes. The monoshock mountings came from a 600 Bandit, carefully grafted into place to accept the swingarm and shocker from a GSXR1100L. Up front Chris went for a set of upside downies originally from an RG125, lengthened and rebuilt with heavier springs by Maxton. Bike Tech provided the alloy slab yokes and risers, topped with the traditional streetfighters choice of Renthal bars. Chris made up the spacers to adapt the GSXR1100W rear wheel, making a surprisingly good match for the 600 Bandit front wheel and discs.

The motor needed only upping to 140 main jets to breathe cleanly through the S&B filters and Kerker pipe, which now emits a lovely deep grumble at low revs and roars with passion as the bike is opened up. This is how big Jap four ought to sound.

Bike Tech provided most of the one-off engineering and detail work, including the very tidy digital speedo housing and headlamp bracket and any number of specially made stainless fasteners. Bike Tech also took care of the stunning paintwork which, in case you were wondering, takes its paint-splattered theme from an in-joke about a paintjob on Chris's old GSXR750. Upholstery is by the legendary Tony Archer, who took the colour scheme and pushed it to new limits with an amazing silver vinyl seat with coloured splashes to mirror the paint. And check out those side panels - perfect stainless replicas of the plastic originals, carefully hand crafted by a mate. If you want a pair he could be persuaded to make some more, enquiries to, you guessed it, Bike Tech.

And if you were wondering about the name "Pig Sick", Chris and his mates spent a whole evening in the pub trying to decide what to call the bike, until he eventually declared he was pig sick of the whole thing. Of such tales legends are made....

I have been sworn to secrecy about Chris's next project (and the name "MV Agusta" will not pass my lips, promise), but this big Zed may well be for sale to help fund its successor by the time you read this. Call Chris on 01642 477983 and be prepared to talk around 3K.

Tech Spec.
Motor: 1981 Kawasaki Z1000J1, rebuilt by Bike Tech (01642 477983). S&B Filters, Kerker 4:1 pipe.
Frame: 1981 Kawasaki Z1000J1 with monoshock conversion by Bike Tech.
Swingarm and rear suspension from Suzuki GSXR1100L.
Rear Wheel: GSXR1100W modified by Bike Tech.
Front Wheel: Suzuki Bandit 600.
Forks: Suzuki RG125 rebuilt and modified by Maxton. Bike Tech alloy slab yokes.
Fuel Tank: Kawasaki Z1000J1.
Seat: Kawasaki Z1000J1, lowered and upholstered by Tony Archer (01484 536832).
Front Mudguard: Suzuki RGV250. Lights: Twin 5 1/4" Bates front, inverted YZF750 rear.
Paint, polishing and sundry one-off fabrication by Bike Tech.
Powder coating by Romax of Stockton (01642 619196).
Wiring by owner with dual switch immobiliser.

Dr.Rod.