The Indian FTR 1200 is one of the few factory-made motorcycles that brings flat track style to the street. But, despite being a bucketload of fun to ride, it’s not universally loved. The biggest criticism leveled against it is related to aesthetics; it’s slathered in plastic, and that makes it look bloated.
That’s exactly what the dream team at Arctos Collection set out to address on this project. Based in Emmental, Switzerland, Arctos is an ongoing collaboration between Ulfert Janssen’s industrial design studio, Gannet Design, and Stefan Fuhrer’s custom bike workshop, Fuhrer Moto.

Ulfert brings years of vehicle design experience to the table, including a ten-year stint at Renault. Stefan’s an ex-MotoGP race mechanic, and now leads a capable team of mechanics and craftsmen. It’s those complementary skills that make them such a formidable team. Starting with an Indian FTR 1200 S as a donor, Arctos set out to ramp up the bike’s flat track styling, while trimming back its bodywork. In stock form, parts of the FTR’s trellis frame are hidden by its faux fuel tank?and the guys wanted to change that.

“We immediately realized why Indian’s designers decided to partially cover the frame,? says Ulfert, ?as everything is asymmetrical on that tubular frame?especially with the mono rear suspension. But we decided to take on the challenge and expose the beautiful trellis frame in full. It gave us a lot of headaches, b...