With Fort Worth’s embryonic bike culture starting to grow (especially in the Near Southside, where we now see more people riding the streets in jeans, t-shirts, jackets, and caps than in spandex and streamlined helmets), another piece of the puzzle has recently opened up: a new custom bike-building shop.

Give a big “hello” to Gallus Cycles, makers of Fort Worth-designed-and-built custom bicycles.

The man behind Gallus is somebody familiar to Near Southside denizens: Jeremy Shlachter. You’ve probably seen Jeremy at Spiral Diner, and in the back hallway bike area you’ve undoubtedly seen his gorgeous custom-made green fixie.

Jeremy’s had quite a history with bicycles, one that’s happened far and wide. In his words:

I started college in 2001 at the University of Texas. Once I moved to Austin, I immediately sold my car(still car free by the way), as i found it was much easier and pleasant getting around town on my bicycle. I was also finding that I was getting too old to chuck myself down sets of stairs on my skateboard. I was looking for a new way to get my thrills, and cycling provided that. One of my roommates encouraged me to do a triathlon with her, and I thought I would give it a shot, just to see if I could do it.

This lead me to buying a road bike, an entry level Fuji. The following year I moved to Scotland to attend the Mackintosh School of Architecture at the Glasgow School of Art. My bike provided a great way for me to discover my new home. During my second year, I managed to get a job as a bicycle courier, when the infamous messenger James “Jailbait” Tait drunkenly offered me a job when I met him at a pub. He told me to turn up the next morning, not really expecting me too. I did turn up. It was December 21, 2003, the shortest day of the year, albeit a cold and nasty day in Glasgow. My road bike was instantly torn up by the gritty Glasgow winter.

I ended up borrowing, and later buying, a pal’s Trek 850 mountain bike. I eventually bought an On-One Il Pompino. It was a great bike for messenger work on, but nowhere near a true track frame, nor as good looking as the classic handmade frames the other messengers were unearthing.

During my messenger period, a love for bikes and cycling continued to grow. Though I enjoyed learning about architecture and the design process, I could see that my true passion was in cycling. I also found that I did not enjoy sitting in front of a computer all day, but preferred crafting things by hand. I made the decision to combine my passion for cycling, love of making things and my knowledge of the design process to begin building bicycle frames.

After five years in Scotland, I returned to the United States at the end of 2006 to pursue frame building. I first attended the Yamaguchi Frame Building School in Colorado and built a track frame under the tutelage of the legendary frame builder Koichi Yamaguchi, onetime U.S. Bicycle Team builder.

Afterward, I set up my workshop in my hometown, Fort Worth, Texas. About 18 months later, I sought to refine my skills from another master frame builder, Doug Fattic of Niles, Michigan. After a formal course, Doug invited me to stay on and assist at his shop for a few weeks(while I picked his brain for any and all frame building know how), and then two-month stint as a volunteer builder for his Ukraine Bicycle Project. While in Ukraine, I helped complete more than 50 bicycle frames for social workers, educators and church pastors.

In January 2009 I officially established Gallus Cycles as a handmade bicycle company.

When we say that a Gallus cycle is “custom,” there’s no exaggeration: nearly every component can be specified to the needs of the rider. Once the type of bike is established – city, track, road – an extensive fitting process can begin, including the collecting of body data and the determination of the use of the bike and needs and preferences of the rider.

Gallus frames are made of steel, and tubing can be sourced from a variety of places. You can choose from either lugged or fillet brazed construction. Finishing components can be ordered from nearly every major company to complete a bike specific to the customer.

Naturally, the bikes closest to the hearts of us at Fort Worthology are the city bikes, designed as real practical urban transportation. Gallus city bikes can take many forms, drawing inspiration from the classic city bikes of Europe. Do you want an comfy upright design like the timeless Dutch city bike? You can have it. Prefer a little speedier French porteur-inspired design? You can have it.

Gallus city bikes can have all the components of great urban cycling: custom racks, full lighting, fenders, chain cases, internally geared hubs, and more.

If you prefer a fixed-gear track design, Gallus can do that as well – as evidenced by the gorgeous green model above that we often see at Spiral. Track bikes can take a traditional form with more aggressive geometry, or a more relaxed urban fixed-gear design that will ride a bit more like a road bike. Of course, since the bikes are custom, you can have it pretty much any way you want.

If you’re a fan of road bikes, Gallus builds beautiful examples of those as well. You can have them any way you’d like, whether you prefer a long-distance design with more relaxed geometry and riding position, or a short, nimble racing design with a more aerodynamic position.

Here’s some more beauty shots of bikes that have emerged from the Gallus shop – the attention to detail is really lovely:

We’re really excited to have a new custom bike builder right here in urban Fort Worth, and wish Jeremy the best of luck with the venture. For more information on bikes, the design process, and pricing, make sure to visit the Gallus Cycles web site, galluscycles.com.