Scott Spark RC SL Frame + Fork

The Scott Spark RC SL Frame + Fork is the foundation of the Gen5 Spark RC SL — HMX SL carbon, RockShox Flight Attendant fork, and Flight Attendant rear shock — for the rider who wants to build the custom XC race bike rather than buy the complete one. The hardware that defines the SL platform is all here. The drivetrain, wheels, cockpit, and seatpost are yours to choose.

At the core is the Spark RC HMX SL carbon frame, Gen5 — Scott's lightest and highest-modulus layup, at a claimed painted weight of 1,427 grams without shock. That's a 12 percent reduction over the previous generation, achieved in part through a redesigned suspension architecture that delivers four-bar-like performance through a single-pivot design. A short-link linkage rotates around the bottom bracket, with a pivot just below the crankset. A flex pivot handles the first millimeter of travel — the relentless small-bump chatter that accumulates over a race lap — before the system ramps progressively through the remaining 120mm. The rear shock sits inside the reinforced downtube, where the frame's existing structural demands made it efficient to integrate shock support without meaningfully adding weight. CeramicSpeed bearings are used at key pivot and bearing surfaces throughout the frame, with titanium hardware at all junctions. The headset includes the Syncros Acros ±0.5° angle-adjust system, bringing the head tube as slack as 65.4° for technical courses, with the fork lock integrated to hold the setting. Syncros Octopus Gen2 cable routing runs all lines fully internally through the headset, color-coded and flexible — the same system whether you build with AXS or mechanical components. The frame is designed around 12x148mm rear spacing, UDH derailleur interface, and a BB92 bottom bracket shell (not included).

The suspension package that comes with this frameset is the full RockShox Flight Attendant pairing: the SID Ultimate Flight Attendant fork (FA Race Day 3P damper, 15x110mm Maxle Stealth, 120mm travel) and SIDLuxe Ultimate Flight Attendant rear shock (190x45mm, Solo Air, rebound adjustment, 120mm rear wheel travel). Both pieces communicate wirelessly and respond in real time to terrain and rider input, switching automatically between lockout, pedaling, and descent modes. On a sustained climb the system locks down for clean power transfer; in a rock garden it opens before you have to think about it. The AXS pod controller — which arrives with any AXS drivetrain — manages the whole ecosystem from the handlebar. This is the exact suspension specification found on the SL complete bike, and it's the hardest part of an SL build to replicate or upgrade into after the fact.

A frameset purchase makes sense in a few different scenarios. You're migrating components from a previous generation Spark or another XC race bike and want the Gen5 platform without paying for a duplicate drivetrain. You already run SRAM XX SL or XX Eagle AXS Transmission and want to pair it with the lightest carbon in the Spark RC lineup. You have a set of wheels — carbon XC wheels from a preferred manufacturer — that doesn't match what the complete build ships with. Or you simply want control over where every dollar of the build goes. The frame accepts up to 130mm forks and a full range of dropper post lengths, with the internal frame storage system included via the Syncros Save the Day kit.

The Spark RC SL Frame + Fork is available in Piano Black / Carbon Black in sizes Small through XL. Included are the Syncros Save the Day kit (spare tube and multi-tool stored in frame), the Syncros Tool & Tubeless Handlebar kit, and a transport axle. A BB92 bottom bracket, drivetrain, wheels, handlebar, stem, seatpost, and saddle are required to complete the build. At $7,999, this is the SL platform — frame, Flight Attendant fork, and Flight Attendant shock — priced as a starting point, not an endpoint.