There are currently some great deals on Scott Spark RCs in the UK and I’m looking to upgrade my Trek Procaliber hardtail XC bike.
I was thinking to get one of the lower-end bikes, since they all have the same frame, and I could upgrade components at a later date.
However, Scott bikes come with a proprietary ‘Nude’ shock (made either by Fox or Rockshox).
I’ve asked Scott which shock I could upgrade to that will still work with the bike (and their Twinloc 3 position remote), and they said, talk to Fox/Rockshox.
I spoke to Fox and they said, they can’t recommend ANY other shocks, because Scott use them in a proprietary way within the frame (it’s in the seatpost just above the BB). And they say that the proprietary ‘Nude’ shocks are not available for sale on their own. You can only buy them with a bike.
It seems nuts that it would be completely impossible to upgrade the shock, and odd that neither the bike manufacturer nor the suspension manufacturer can answer a simple question.
Almost all bikes come with a custom tune rear shock that isn’t available to purchase through the shock manufacturer, and rarely thought the bike manufacturer. No idea what options you have to work with the Scott 3 point system system, but the issue is hardly unique to Scott, save that their rear shock has 3 unique travel modes instead of damping modes.
I’m not concerned about a custom-tune. It’s a completely custom-made shock, to meet Scott’s spec.
From what I can see, the ‘Nude’ shocks have the Schrader valve at a different angle to the general shocks available, so it can be accessed through the ports in the frame.
No, you summed it up pretty well. Forks are pretty easy to swap out, shocks are often trickier and you won’t get any help from bike MFG. A little googling and you can often run across folks running aftermarket shocks on some bikes, changing travel, etc. I’d bet that scott is tricky though with the in-frame mounting. You might be limited to that specific shock on that bike to get the remote/adjustments/air port/install hardware/etc. accessible.
I’m surprised you can’t buy one from Scott as a “replacement” part. I’ve had a scott RC race bike for years and have not had good support for it in the US/locally on parts, so that might be just how they roll. The bike has been pretty reliable, but I just got a new epic to replace it.
One issue is that with the shock embedded in the frame it has a proprietary position for the Schrader valve in order to be able to use a shock pump through the access port, apparently.
Or might the shock be absolutely fine and not need upgrading? Looking at the specs there appears to be a Fox 5 EVOL or a Rockshox something or other, and a Fox 5 Factory on the top spec one. I bet the lower ones are perfectly good and upgrading wouldn’t really make much difference.
As a long time Spark owner and XC racer I’m of the opinion that there is no discernible difference between mid to high range forks/shocks. They will feel exactly the same and psi, rebound, tires, etc. will make much more of a noticeable difference. Don’t worry about upgrading the fork/shock, there will be no reason to.
