We’ve covered Bandit9’s morphing-metal aesthetic here at Yanko Design for years, from their bullet-shaped EVE Odyssey to the manta-ray-inspired Supermarine, and each time their Vietnam-based studio delivers something that looks like it was poured from molten mercury rather than built from conventional parts. Their latest creation, the Ducati 821, takes this liquid metal philosophy to its logical extreme, creating what might be the closest thing to Apple’s Liquid Glass OS rendered in physical form. Where most custom bike builders bolt on parts and call it a day, Bandit9 has essentially dissolved the boundaries between aluminum and carbon fiber, creating a monolithic sculpture that happens to house an 821cc V-twin engine.
The story behind this particular machine reads like a love letter to obsessive craftsmanship. Originally commissioned by a rider who fell hard for Bandit9’s EVE Odyssey, this one-off build (now expanded to a limited run of 9 units at $44,900 each) started with a simple brief: build something to dominate mountain roads. What emerged was a complete reimagining of the Ducati Monster 821 platform, where every single component was hand-fabricated from scratch to achieve what Bandit9 calls “unity” – the distillation of disparate motorcycle parts into a single, flowing form. The result is a machine that looks like it was carved from a single block of metal, with polished aluminum seamlessly transitioning into MotoGP-grade carbon fiber in a way that makes traditional panel gaps and mounting points seem quaint.
Designer: Bandit9
Technically, this thing is a weapon. The 821cc 8v V-twin pumps out 110 bhp and 65.8 ft-lb of torque, launching this 175kg sculpture from 0-60 mph in 3.3 seconds and on to a top speed of 201 km/h. The custom tubular steel trellis frame combines with cast aluminum sections to create a rigid foundation that translates rider input without distortion – crucial when you’re leaning into corners at speeds that would make most riders reconsider their life choices. Non-adjustable 43mm Sachs forks up front and a preload/rebound adjustable Sachs rear shock handle the suspension duties, while dual 320mm Brembo discs with four-piston monobloc calipers provide stopping power that matches the bike’s aggressive performance envelope.
The exhaust system is completely integrated into the bodywork, exiting through a barely visible outlet that maintains the bike’s clean lines. The LED lighting system (headlights, DRL, signals, and taillights) is embedded so seamlessly into the body that it’s nearly invisible when not illuminated. Even the gas cap is aluminum-milled to match the overall aesthetic, while custom foot pegs, rear controls, and mirrors continue the theme of functional sculpture. The single-sided swingarm keeps the rear wheel visually clean, and even the screws are polished to maintain the obsessive attention to finish quality.
Where most bikes are assemblies of discrete components, the Ducati 821 reads as a single, continuous surface that happens to contain an engine, wheels, and rider. The transition from the polished aluminum front section to the carbon fiber rear happens so smoothly that it takes a moment to realize you’re looking at two completely different materials. It’s a design direction that’s typical to Bandit9’s work, bending metal in ways that make aluminum look like mercury. The references to T-1000 from Terminator will never get old.
The riding experience promises to be equally uncompromising. The aggressive geometry and 870mm seat height put you in a full racing crouch, while the 16-liter tank provides about 145 miles of range – enough for serious mountain carving sessions but not much more. The high-density polyurethane foam seat prioritizes form over long-distance comfort, and the minimalist controls strip away everything that isn’t essential to the act of going fast. This is a machine built for the kind of rider who sees mountain roads as a personal racetrack and considers traffic laws more like suggestions.
At $44,900, the Ducati 821 costs more than most cars, but that misses the point entirely. This isn’t transportation; it’s rideable sculpture that happens to be faster than anything else on the road. The fact that only 9 units will ever exist makes it less a motorcycle purchase and more an investment in automotive art. For the kind of person who commissioned the original build – someone who saw Bandit9’s EVE Odyssey and thought “I need that, but angrier” – the price is almost irrelevant. What matters is owning something that looks like it materialized from a future where form and function have achieved perfect synthesis, where the boundary between art and engineering has been completely erased.
The post Forget Liquid Glass: This custom Ducati Monster 821 by Bandit9 looks like it’s made from ‘Liquid Metal’ first appeared on Yanko Design.