Types Of Bicycles

Touring

There are few things more elegant, or more useful, than a real touring bike. If you measure your rides in weeks and months instead of hours, True North has a frame for you. Touring is a style of cycling that is almost completely ignored by larger manufacturers, but True North makes custom touring bikes to handle anything from light duty tours to around-the-world expeditions. A few of our customers have reached the 100,000 km mark on their True North touring bikes.

With saddle times of upwards of 8 hours a day for months or years, there is no better argument for going custom – proper fit on touring bikes is absolutely crucial. Weight distribution must also be considered given the amount of weight that is hauled around on some of these bikes. We pay close attention to both fit and load distribution when building custom True North touring bikes.

We build frames around 700C, 650B or 26″ wheels depending on the size and preference of the rider. The aesthetics of a True North touring bikes vary with intended use. A light duty bike might resemble a road frame, whereas an expedition bike might resemble a mountain bike. Frame style is also dictated by tire size. The tubing used to build True North touring bikes is aimed at ensuring a strong, stiff, durable frame, but also places a high value on comfort-this is a tall order and one that mass producers just don’t like to touch. Touring bikes tend to see a lot of tough situations, including airline mishandling. Touring bikes must be especially stiff in torsion to resist the heavy load placed at either end of the bike.

Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

… more pictures of our Touring bicycles on this Flickr page

… more pictures of our Road bicycles on this Flickr page

Road

For recreation or competition, the fit of a custom road frame increases your power, efficiency and comfort. We make our frames from steel (welded or lugged) titanium or bonded carbon-titanium. Each material has its advantages in terms of cost, weight, durability and the ride performance that can be achieved. We work with you to determine the material selection and frame geometry the best meets your needs.

Touring, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

Allroad / Gravel

True North has been making gravel bikes long before the term was popularized. If you are looking for something that doesn’t quite fit into the road, cyclocross or touring genre, the Allroad / Gravel bike may be your last chance at being pigeonholed. Slacker head angles and longer chain stays and lower bottom brackets are popular in this category for increased stability, so to is increased tire clearance for large volume rubber. Ride characteristics can be tuned anywhere from racing to long distance riding and touring. Both titanium and steel make great gravel bike materials due to their vibration and impact damping characteristics.

Touring, Road, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

Jordan's titanium gravel crusher is taking shape

… more pictures of our Allroad/Gravel bicycles on this Flickr page

… more pictures of our Cyclocross bicycles on this Flickr page

Cyclocross

Although cyclocross bikes are making room for gravel bikes on showroom floors, there is still a place for a dedicated cross bike in many stables. Geometry, top tube placement, cable routing and frame features are all customized to your ‘cross style. A cross bike can also make a good all around bike – capable of handling road as well as trails and off-season training.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

Track

Nothing quite matches the beauty and simplicity of a custom track frame. With the addition of the Mattamy National Cycling to the local scene established by the Forest City Velodrome, track cycling is a growing discipline in Southern Ontario. With a custom True North frame, we can tailor size, geometry, handling and stiffness your size, weight, riding style and preferred events. Whether you enjoy endless laps in open sessions for off-season training or laying down the hammer in heated competition, we can build the right bike for you.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

Titanium coupled tandem to single bike. In tandem mode.

… more pictures of our Tandem bicycles on this Flickr page

Tandem

Few bikes call for a custom build quite like a tandem. With size differential between riders, stock tandems are almost always a compromise in fit and handling. True North builds on- and off-road tandems sized to the captain and the stoker. Our tandems often feature S&S Couplers which allow the bike to be broken down for transport and travel. We have also built what we believe to be the world’s first transformer tandem, which has the ability to convert from a tandem to a single bike in a matter of minutes.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

Mountain

True North Cycles started out building mountain bikes, and they remain a staple in the true north workshop. Many customers opt for single-speeds, or frames with eccentric bottom brackets that can be set up with gears or single. With the advent of 27.5+ and 29+ you may opt for increased clearance in the fork and chainstays (and “Boost” hub spacing) which affords the flexibility to run bigger tires for training and gnarly riding, while giving you the ability to swap out for a narrower, lightweight wheel and tire set for fast conditions or come race day. These bikes really do offer the best of most worlds.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

… more pictures of our Mountain bicycles on this Flickr page

Christines 29er Travel bike for New Zealand

Trekking / Bikepacking

Off-road touring has been around forever, but more recently Bikepacking has carved a niche in the marketplace with frame bags and bikes with the gear hauling capacities of touring bikes and the trail capabilities of mountain bikes. Often using plus sized tires for comfort and load carrying capacity, these bikes emphasize comfort, efficiency and stability with provisions for bags and racks to take you unsupported across provinces or continents.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

Fatbike

There is no sense in sitting idle in the winter season, and with more and more mountain bike clubs and trail organizations offering trail grooming and organized winter riding, there is no better time to get on a custom fatbike. There are a lot of factors that go into designing these unique rides, and we build to suit your style and terrain. Whether you opt for maximum clearance for the fattest tires, race geometry and narrow Q-factor or aim for travel with S&S couplers, we can make a fatbike that’s tailored to you.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist, Special Projects

… more pictures of our Fatbike bicycles on this Flickr page

Paul's new city bike with an i-motion 9 rear hub

… more pictures of our City/Commuter/Cruiser bicycles on this Flickr page

City / Commuter / Cruiser

Going custom is a great choice for the bikes that rack up the miles day after day. When your bike takes you from A to B, the design can be tailored to the ride: Agile traffic dodgers, country cruisers, rail-trail rollers or urban haulers all get full custom geometry to get you there and back.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, Electric Assist, Special Projects

Electric Assist

True North works with a number of different electric assist systems. We offer frame designs that accommodate various battery locations and drive mounts, with frame designs ranging from ultra-low step-through cruisers to the ultimate in efficient road-bike commuters.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Special Projects

Special Projects

We have done a lot of unique projects over the years. When other builders tap out, we will step up and get it done. Have a look in our gallery for some of our amazing builds over the years.

Touring, Road, Allroad/Gravel, Cyclocross, Track, Tandem, Mountain, Trekking/Bikepacking, Fatbike, City/Commuter/Cruiser, Electric Assist