With the Plasma, Sachs threw everything into their attempt to break into the US market. It was fiendishly high-tech, with a wacky cable routing, hollow aluminium hanger bolt, extensive use of composites, astoundingly light weight and plentiful stainless steel fittings - all very classy. The adjustment screws could even be turned with an allen key.

All of this has much in common with the SRAM ESP 9.0SL, and I often wondered if SRAM and Sachs worked together, even before SRAM bought Sachs’ bicycle parts business (also in 1997).

Like the ESP 9.0SL, I always had the feeling that the plastic Plasma might explode at any moment - but I have no evidence that they actually did so.

This example has its aluminium parts badly painted with white enamel. Mystifyingly, I have seen this on a number of examples - was it a fashion amongst Plasma owners to deface them in this way?

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1. •Brand: Sachs
   

2. •Country: Germany, manufactured in France
   

3. •Date of introduction: 1997
   

4. •Date of this example: 1997? (inner pulley cage stamped Y7)
   

5. •Model no: unknown
   

6. •Weight: 196g including hanger plate
   

7. •Maximum cog: 32 teeth
   

8. •Total capacity: 40 teeth
   

9. •Pulley centre to centre: 86mm
   

10. •Index compatibility: 8 speed
    

11. •Chain width: 3/32”
    

12. •Logic: top normal
    

13. •Pivots: two pivots, front sprung and rear unsprung
    

14. •Material: largely plastic (OK - ‘composite’), inner parallelogram plate and outer pulley cage plate aluminium