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Sachs
Sachs was a European conglomerate that bought up many of the formerly independent French parts makers, including Atom/Maillard/Normandy (hubs, pedals, freewheels) Huret (derailers) and Sedis (chains.)
Sachs also made multi-speed internal-gear hubs in 3-, 5-, 7- and 12-speed versions. Their "3 x 7" hub was a hybrid system, a 3-speed internal hub that took a 7-sprocket cassette, providing 21 speeds with only one chainwheel.
Sachs formerly also made kick-back hubs and a "2 x 6" hybrid hub, the "Orbit". The one clear area of domination for Sachs was its chains, which were generally acknowledged to be the finest available.
Sachs was the major European competitor to Shimano for the general bicycle parts market. Their parts in general were quite good, and stand up well in comparison with Shimano equivalents, although exchange rate problems sometimes make them less affordable. The bicycle division was sold to the SRAM Corporation, in November 1997. Most of the products formerly called "Sachs" are now called "SRAM." Up-to-date information is on the SRAM site.
