mountain bikes: Scott Scale RC 900 Worldcup – The Worldcup Replica Hardtail

It feels like the Scott Scale has been around since carbon hardtails have been around. The bike has followed all wheel sizes and trends. We were allowed to test the 2018 version in the World Cup version and put the team replica through its paces.

Scott Scale RC 900 Worldcup Frame

Visually, the frame resembles the Scott-Sram Racing Team's equipment. Stickers of the team sponsors are attached to the seatstays, which provide a World Cup feeling. If you don't like it, you can simply remove the sticker. The carbon frame in general is a real eye-catcher. The filigree struts together with the high-quality carbon make the frame look very classy.

The frame not only looks high quality, its components are of the finest quality. The Scott HMX carbon fibers make the frame very light and stiff at the same time. According to Scott, the scale frame should weigh less than 900 grams. But nowadays a hardtail frame should not only be stiff and light. Comfort must not be neglected either. The SDS2 technology developed by Scott is intended to make the frame significantly more comfortable. The frame is divided into two zones. One zone (down tube, bottom bracket, bottom bracket) is designed to be stiff to ensure propulsion. The comfort zone (seat stays, saddle tube, top tube) should at the same time increase comfort in order to protect the driver and offer a more pleasant driving experience.

Scott doesn't do without modern standards either. Very short chain stays can be achieved with the Boost standard. All trains are internally routed and a front derailleur could also be installed. Clever detail here on the bike. With a 1-speed configuration, the front derailleur mount does not go unused. A chain guide is mounted here to prevent the chain from falling off. The dropouts are integrated into the thru-axle system. The dropouts are lighter and stiffer than conventional solutions, and they also prevent the frame from being damaged if the rear derailleur is hit.

Scott Scale RC 900 Worldcup Geometry

The Scale 900 RC models are only available with 29″ wheels. When developing the geometry, care was taken to develop a fast bike with reserves for downhill. What is immediately noticeable in the table are the very short seat stays at 425 mm, which should make for a very manoeuvrable bike. To ensure that the bike with the short seatstays does not climb up too easily, the seat angle was chosen at 73,6°, which is typical for XCs. The long reach (443,2 in L) and the moderately slack steering angle (69,5° for a race hardtail) ensure the necessary smoothness. The stack has been designed to be short so that the driver can adjust the cockpit height to suit their needs.

Scott Scale RC 900 World Cup Equipment

The equipment of the Scott Scale 900 RC Worldcup is based on the team bike of the Scott-Sram XC Worldcup team and draws on the product range of the team sponsors. Only carbon wheels, a complete Sram XX1 Eagle in gold, higher quality brakes and a SID Worldcup fork are mounted on the real team bike. Otherwise, the replica is quite similar to the team bike.

As you can guess, there are many Sram parts on the bike. At the front, a Rock Shox SID RLC springs in a striking red. Braking is provided by the Sram Level TLM with a 180 mm rotor at the front and a 160 mm rotor at the rear. The circuit is handled by a Sram XX1 group with XO1 cassette and chain. The chainring on the crank offers 32 teeth and the cassette has a range of 10 to 50 teeth, which should definitely be sufficient. DT Swiss is also a sponsor of the Scott-Sram team. DT Swiss wheels with the X1825 Spline are also used on the replica. But they are almost a little heavy for such an XC race bike. There is still some tuning potential here. The remaining parts such as handlebars, stem, etc. come as Syncros parts from our own company and are perfectly matched to the bike. For example, the stem forms a line with the top tube, which looks good.

Scott Scale RC 900 Worldcup - On the trail

Visually, the scale looks fast. We were of course looking forward to the practical test. We were surprised at the first meters. The bike is not quite as lively as we had imagined. We assume that it was due to the slightly heavy wheels. These could still be converted to tubeless or you can use this set as a training wheelset and treat yourself to very light ones for competitions. The short chainstays are also immediately noticeable. The bike can be easily pulled onto the rear wheel and moved in a wheelie.

The seating position on the bike was very comfortable. Not too stretched, but still sporty above the bottom bracket, so you can ensure proper propulsion. This makes bolting on flat passages fun and you can also make good progress on level ground. It quickly goes into the first climb. The speed can be carried along well when pedaling out of the saddle, as no weaknesses in stiffness could be identified. The fork can be locked using the very ergonomic Scott remote on the left handlebar, so that not a watt is lost on asphalt when climbing. On longer climbs, the Scott can be moved lightly thanks to the good seating position and is also a lot of fun uphill. The bike reveals its comfortable values ​​for the first time on technical climbs. The seat post flexes comfortably and lets the bike sit more smoothly on the trail. We couldn't determine to what extent the rear end flexed, but the bike generally felt very good on rough terrain. We would possibly only recommend converting to tubeless so that you can drive a little less air pressure without risk and ensure more comfort. The translation was enough for us on the mountain.

On the trail with the Scott we were really surprised. Rarely have we had so much fun with a race hardtail. Due to the short chainstays, the Scale is very agile. It's easy to maneuver in tight curves and the front wheel can be easily lupped over obstacles. In rough passages, the bike is very quiet for a hardtail, because the bumps are felt to be slightly dampened. Even in technical and fast passages, the bike sits very well on the trail thanks to the slightly slack steering angle and the long reach. The SID fork absorbs soft and hard impacts well and lets the bike lie flat on the trail. The 720 mm handlebars and the ergonomic grips provide the necessary control. The Sram brakes fit well on the fingers and also have the necessary reserves for longer descents. Only the Maxxis Aspen tires are a little overwhelmed as soon as the trails get wetter. Otherwise, the Scott really offers a great overall package and not only racers have fun with it. The bike can also only be recommended for a quick after-work ride.