I've owned four of Richard Sachs bicycles and currently own three.  My first, bought used while waiting for my RS custom frame, was a team road frame which turned out to be much smaller than advertised by the seller.  I built it anyway, rode it, loved it in spite of its size, but have since given it to a junior who races for our club.

I now have three Richard Sachs bicycles.  The first is a 59 cm road frame, painted in the classic red/cream colors, and built with a mixture of Campagnolo Record and Chorus 9 speed parts.  These bicycles are beautiful enough to be appreciated for that aspect alone.  I spent quite a bit of time with the bare frame, turning it over and over to look at it from a variety of perspectives. 

Since I'm a rider and not a framebuilder, I don't pretend to be able to notice all the subtleties of its details.  Nonetheless, the lugs have perfect edges, beautiful curves.  The Joe Bell paint shows them off well.  In my mind, though, its beauty would count for relatively little if it didn't ride so well.  Mine is a race bicycle, and seems most at home when ridden as such.  I was immediately comfortable on it.  The handling is quick, precise.  It tracks beautifully on curving descents. 

To be honest, the only problem with this bicycle is this:  it's so pretty that last year I just couldn't bring myself to race on it and risk crashing on it.  I think I've gotten over that, and intend to try it in some races this year.

I recently bought a used cyclocross frameset from Adam Myerson, made for him when he was a Richard Sachs sponsored rider.  It's well used, with cable rubs through the paint and the usual nicks.  I've ridden it a few hundred miles this winter.

The ride and handling of this frame are hard to believe.  Even though it's really a bit small for me, I have it built so I'm comfortable.  Because it already has its scars, riding it in bad weather was easier to get used to.

My most recent addition is a custom cyclocross frameset, 58.5 cm, also painted in the red/cream paint.  Everything I said about the craftsmanship of my road frame holds true for this frame as well.  It is a true cyclocross race frame: no water bottle bosses, top tube cable routing, no pump peg. I've only had time to ride it once, but can't wait to get out on it again.

The ride is wonderful.  I have ridden a number of other cyclocross bicycles, and the thing I noticed about the Sachs bicycle that's different is that it somehow soaks up little bumps—the ride seems smoother, but the bottom bracket area is as stiff as can be.  I did some gear mashing, out of the saddle jumps with a marginally trimmed front derailler, and never got any derailler rub.  At the same time, I can ride in the saddle over surfaces rough enough to get me out of the saddle or wishing for a suspension seatpost on any other cyclocross bicycle I've ridden.  This will be my race bicycle for the next cyclocross season.  I've gotten it muddy already!

My teammates are going to get tired of hearing me talk about them!