in 1995 Sachs redesigned its mid-range derailleurs with new pulley cages, with a very open design around the tension pulley and a remodelled outer paralelogram plate with a rather fetching groove along its centre. These new models were slightly dull, but decent, pieces of engineering, but they could not escape the signature Sachs marketing chaos.

Some models from this period include:

In 1995:

• Sachs 6000 (M6000). This had turquoise painted outer parallelogram plate and Allen key small bolts.
• Sachs 5000 (M5000). This had a black painted outer parallelogram plate and hex head small bolts.

Confusingly, these two roughly corresponded to the previous generations 7000 and 6000 models.

And then, just one year later, in 1996:

• Sachs Neos (*NE**). This had a polished finish, including the outer parallelogram plate, but with an oval turquoise Neos logo and stainless steel Allen key small bolts.
• Sachs Centera (*CE**). This was less polished, had a black painted outer parallelogram plate with an oval white Centera logo and chromed steel Allen key small bolts.

Each of these 4 models were available in an unclear range of pulley cage lengths. The options for pulley cage lengths were 50mm, 70mm and 90mm, giving total capacities of 28T, 34T and 40T respectively. All three had a maximum sprocket of 32T.

All documents say that all four models were available with either 50mm and 70mm lengths. Different documents give different information on which models were available in the 90mm length.

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This is a very clean example of a Sachs Neos (RNES1). The 'R' in its reference indicates that it is a 'road' model. The 'NE' indicates it is a 'Neos'. The 'S' indicates that it has a 'short' cage - 50mm long. The '1' indicates it is the first generation.

It has:

• A polished finish.
• A polished outer parallelogram plate.
• A turquoise Neos logo on its outer parallelogram plate.
• Stainless steel Allen key small bolts.

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• Derailleur brands: Sachs
• Categories: Sachs - the Rival story
• Country: Germany, manufactured in France
• Date of introduction: 1995?
• Date of this example: possibly 1996 - the inner pulley cage plate is stamped ‘W6 S’
• Model no.: RNES1, product number 56 1100 402 201
• Weight: 257g
• Maximum cog: 32 teeth (source: Sachs)
• Total capacity: 28 teeth (source: Sachs)
• Pulley centre to centre: 50mm
• Index compatibility: 8 speed?
• Chain width: 3/32”
• Logic: top normal
• B pivot: sprung
• P pivot: sprung
• Materials: aluminium knuckles, outer parallelogram plate and outer pulley cage plate, the rest is steel