This week we?ve got a stripped-back Indian FTR 1200 from France, thoughts on the return of Buell, and a details of tweaked Honda Gold Wing from Italy. And we take a look at BAAK?s new custom workshop in Los Angeles.

Indian FTR 1200 by Sur Les Chapeaux De Roues The SLCDR workshop is in the middle of nowhere?the tiny village of Tréméven in Brittany, France. But shop founder Manuel Jouan has a sense of style (and the skills) to rival any of his cosmopolitan competitors.
This FTR 1200 is his latest build, and it’s a little deceptive. ?Substantial work has been done on this bike, even if it?s not apparent at first glance,? he says.

The rear of the frame has been completely rebuilt, and Manuel has built a new aluminum fuel tank to fit around it. The tank is under the saddle, and now runs almost the entire length of the frame. Removing the stock air box has freed up space to increase the tank capacity, which is now five liters more than the 13 liters of the original. The new saddle is upholstered in leather, and Manuel has hand-formed a compact aluminum tail unit to cover the new frame tubing.

To showcase the 1,203cc V-twin, he?s also repositioned the oil cooler, and snuck a tiny lithium battery into a box under the swingarm. And the huge stock muffler is gone: there?s new pipework terminated with a more compact SC Project muffler.
The stock headlight surround is gone too, with the lens now housed within a conventional bucket, and the indicators have been swapped o...