Chris Scholtka lives in a town called Cottbus, 68 miles southeast of Berlin. He’s a firefighter and has an industrial mechanic background, but he spends his downtime customizing bikes as ‘Motocrew‘ out of his garage at home. Far more than a shade-tree customizer, Chris has hit his stride by applying his aggressive style to some of the most difficult donor bikes, and except for paint, he does everything himself.
We’ve profiled Motocrew custom motorcycles based on Hondas, Kawasakis and Yamahas, and his recent Harley Pan American tracker and John Player Special BMW K-Series prove the versatility of Chris’ style. Motocrew is certainly here to stay.
Firefighter-turned-custom bike builder Chris Scholtka has a knack for building slick, and somewhat hot-rodded, café racers. This Royal Enfield Continental GT 650 café racer epitomizes his style well—but it was almost built using a very different donor bike. “It started two years ago when an old friend called me,” Chris tells us. “She had received…
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Motocrew leads the charge this week, with a custom Triumph Bobber inspired by their client’s hopped-up Porsche 911. We also throw the spotlight on a Suzuki DRZ400 supermoto, the new Kawasaki W230 modern classic, and a fully original Yamaha BW350 that just sold for a cheeky amount of money.
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Despite its increasing popularity, the 1980s K-series BMW remains a difficult bike to customize. There’s hardly an inch of it that isn’t blocky, angular, or just plain awkward—so it takes a sharp eye and deft hand to massage it into a slick and cohesive café racer. Enter Chris Scholtka. Based in Cottbus, Germany, Chris splits…
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Ever since Harley-Davidson went quiet on the future of the seemingly ill-fated Bronx streetfighter, we’ve been waiting for The Motor Co. to build something truly spicy with their 150-horsepower Revolution Max engine. The new Sportster S is a step in the right direction, but it’s held back by confused styling, a hefty visual weight, and…
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Performance and utility are the words of the week. We kick off with a 1100 cc Kawasaki endurance racer, followed by a…
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It’s no longer uncommon to see old K-series BMWs go under the knife. But that doesn’t mean that every custom K is…
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When we think of Motocrew, we think of sleek, muscular customs with a very modern edge. But sometimes it’s good to try…
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When a new custom builder hits the scene, there’s no way of knowing if they’re a one hit wonder, or if they’ll…
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There’s a lot to be said for a good old-fashioned muscle bike. And in the 1980s, the Kawasaki GPZ900R was the benchmark.…
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We love subtle, understated style on custom bikes. But we also have a sneaking regard for machines that are aggressive and in…
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A few years ago, building a cafe racer usually meant imbuing it with a sense of nostalgia. But these days, the custom…
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The annals of motorcycling history are filled with ‘tweeners’—motorcycles that improved upon outgoing models, but eventually fizzled out to make way for…
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