Customizing a motorcycle is often a game of knowing what to change, and what to leave alone. Some bikes have attributes that you’d want to highlight rather than hide?like the Ducati 900 SuperSport, and its iconic trellis frame.
On the stock machine it’s barely peeking out from behind a fairing. Ditching the fairing is a fast track to a radically different look, but then you’re faced with another challenge?the angled baseline created by the frame.

We’ve seen builders get creative to work around this, but we’ve never seen anyone work inside it… until now. This shredded 2001 Ducati 900 SS i.e. cafe racer comes all the way from Russia, and it’s one of the most innovative uses of the Duc trellis we’ve ever seen. The culprits are Birdie Customs?a small Moscow-based team headed by founder Ilya. Ilya cut his teeth about eleven years ago in a scooter workshop, where he’d build up a new race scooter each season. But he eventually transitioned to building custom motorcycles, which he’s been doing for the past three years.

Customizing bikes in Russia is not without its challenges; the scene is small and aftermarket parts can be hard to come by. Judging by this Ducati though, Ilya and co. seem to be making it work.
?You should believe in yourself and believe in your craft?it is bound to lead you somewhere,? he says. ?And, if you?re lucky, you might find yourself doing work that not only pays the bills, but also makes you ...