Dangerholm's Scott Spark RC Neon Project

Jan 30, 2024
by Danger Holm  
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Words: Dangerholm

Fourth time's a charm. While I do have to admit to having a lot of bikes, as in a lot, it is perhaps still not as many bikes as you would think. This is simply because I often re-use frames and components, disassembling them into molecules in order to then create what appears to be a brand new bike.

Now you might think, why not "just" get a new bike? And why even rebuild a perfectly fine custom dream bike to begin with?

Starting with the latter, I guess it comes down to me having a somewhat restless mind. Thinking about bikes pretty much day and night, no matter how many I build I always seem to have more ideas than bikes. It's like a creative itch, always wanting to improve and make new visions come to life. So with many of my bikes, there comes a day when I look at it and suddenly go: time for a change.

As for not just starting with a new bike from scratch, it's often quite time consuming to sell a bike and arrange new stuff. And perhaps more importantly, there's just something about the feeling of quite literally destroying your own hard work and making something new out of the pieces. It somehow feels more real and honest, especially in an artistic sense, than the usual out with the old and in with the new.

Why am I telling you all this? Well, the bike featured here is actually the fourth bike built using the very same frame. So before we dig into the latest and greatest, let's have a quick look in the rearview mirror.

Version One, Two and Three
In the autumn of 2021 I finally received my first Scott Spark RC World Cup frame of the current generation, with its updated spec and integrated rear shock. The plan was to spend the winter building it into a lightweight XC weapon, but at this point I was more than eager to just get it up and running before the snow. It's always good to spend some time getting to know a bike model, in order to later be able to optimize it for your riding style and preferences.

So essentially I slapped on whatever parts I had laying around. This included what I suspect once was Nino Schurter's spare handlebar, as it arrived from the Scott-SRAM team with its -40 degree angle and pre-cut to 680mm, along with a Minion DHF shod full carbon front wheel and double 4000 lumen lights.

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It's a Sledgehammer.
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Dang! Ever take it off any sweet jumps?

With the excitement of the first rides out of the way, I decided to turn it into something a little more sensible and closer to what I imagined would be the final version. Since I was planning to strip the frame down to bare carbon anyway, I slapped on a quick rattle can paint job just for fun and equipped it with some more XC specific details.

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Winter was then spent customizing components and painstakingly stripping the frame down to bare carbon, in order to build the Spark RC "Hypersonic" which you can read the full Pinkbike feature about.

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At just 9,19kg or 20,26lbs including dropper, it was an absolute rocket to ride.

The Final Build
As amazing as the bike was to ride, deep down I wasn't 100% happy with the looks and that's never a good sign knowing myself. There just wasn't enough pop or contrast between the light pink and the raw carbon fiber, so I just couldn't resist thinking about doing another rebuild.

In the autumn of 2023, two years after first laying my hands on the frame, I found myself with a Jagwire Elite Link cable housing kit in limited edition purple sitting on the workbench. I had been wanting this super cool style of aluminium link housing since forever, and this little thing is what finally ignited the spark (pun intended) to tear the bike down one last time. I started to look for other parts to tie in with the purple, and seeing an old grey and neon yellow Scott "Team Racing" MTB from the 90's while visiting the Roc d'Azur event in France served as inspiration for new paint.

As this is a rebuild of a previously presented project, I won't dive fully into every single detail about it. If you find yourself wondering about something after reading this article, perhaps it's a good idea to revisit the 2022 Hypersonic story linked above to learn more. But with that said, there's plenty of cool updates here worth a closer look.


Frame Set
The Spark RC World Cup frame had been absolutely flawless, but it was time to go glossy carbon. Considering how precisely I had stripped the frame from paint and primer previously, it was actually quite a bit of work to put it back on. Carbon fiber frames are always a bit uneven in areas such as joints, which is taken care of at the factory using various types of filler and leveling primer. Having earlier removed all that, I now needed to use plenty of layers of primer in some spots to restore the nice, smooth and even finish.

While servicing and painting the Intend Samurai XC fork, I also changed the forks cartridge to the updated RockShox Charger RaceDay 2 with much improved reliability and lock-out performance.

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Cockpit
The Syncros Fraser iC SL one-piece carbon handlebars I had been using on the bike are great and integrate so easily with the Spark frame. But in this update, I wanted to push integration further, and try to go for a cleaner overall look. Planning a purple and polished theme I also wanted the stem to match the appearance of the fork crown, tying the two together.

By using an Acros headset cover, it's possible to use any stem on these frames, allowing me to run a custom polished Intend Grace CC in 90mm length with a RadoxX Dangerholm Signature Series top cap. Aside from low weight and absolutely beautiful looks, the best part about this stem is that with a little sanding it's possible to fit a SRAM BlipBox inside. Paired with a custom made in Germany Schmolke Carbon TLO handlebar in 730mm width, I could then run cables internally from the BlipBox to the brand new Zirbel ZShift 01 controller.

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This is a little piece of tech that I've actually been hoping for since the AXS system first saw the light of day. As good as the stock controllers are, now we finally have a 3-function option that allows you to also use an AXS dropper - all in one place on your right hand side.

Not only does this clean things up, but perhaps most importantly it means that you can run any trigger style suspension remote on your left hand side if you wish. In this case though I still opted for the RockShox Twistloc remote, just because of its minimalistic design.

This is also where the Jagwire Elite Link cable housing came into use. However, I ended up running a slightly customized setup. I wanted to assure there was no risk of any rubbing issues with the internal routing, so just before the cable enters the headset there's a splitter and it continues inside with traditional plastic coated cable housing.

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Seat Post Combo
The bike will mainly be used with a custom polished RockShox Reverb AXS in 125mm drop, but I also have a super light rigid Björn Glagol seat post for it. Made in Slovenia and coming in at just 118g, the latter saves around 500g over the dropper. Thanks to the wireless AXS system with the remote always installed it's quick work switching between the two.

It's worth noting that on this area of the bike, you really do clearly feel the weight saving. Because any time you're out of the saddle pedalling, swinging the bike from side to side, this is the highest point and you get a big pendulum effect.

The saddle is also new, and it's a really interesting one. The Björn Setka is most likely the lightest saddle in the world with 3D printed padding and different density in different areas to maximize comfort. One detail I quickly noticed that is bound to further increase comfort, is that the carbon shell itself is super flexible. This means that the saddle will flex and take the edge of big hits effectively, not having to rely mostly on just the padding.

Speaking of Björn, the Skoba 20g bottle cage is also made by them and in this case fastened with purple Kogel titanium bolts.

As a finishing touch in this area of the bike, I used my favorite seat post clamp of all time, the Tune Würger Skyline. Unfortunately it was discontinued a few years back, but it's still as minimalistic and cool looking as ever.

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Brakes
No changes to my trusty Trickstuff Piccola Carbon brakes or the Trickstuff Dächle UL brake discs, but to go with the purple theme, I added some matching titanium brake disc bolts from Kogel.

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Drivetrain
Having previously used a mechanical SRAM XX1 Eagle rear derailleur, the biggest change was moving to a tuned SRAM Red AXS XPLR derailleur. Not only is it wireless to work with the Zirbel ZShift controller, but being the brand's gravel derailleur, it has different specs too.

It's made for 10-44T cassettes, but also works with the 11-46T Rotor cassette pictured here or the 9-45T e.13 Helix Race Gravel cassette. The latter provides a 500% range, just as much as the original Eagle systems. So there are a few options depending on what gearing ratio you want to run, and also in gearing steps. Being a bit smaller it is of course also a bit lighter.

Red XPLR uses a different clutch compared to its MTB counterparts, the Orbit fluid clutch. While it's perhaps not as heavy duty as the clutch mechanisms seen on Eagle/Transmission, it seems to do the job well enough for XC at least. One has to remember that the shorter cage also helps a bit with the chain slap.

I polished the b-knuckle and parallelogram, and also opted for the Kogel Kolossos cage and pulley wheel system. There is of course a performance aspect to it, with ceramic bearings and lower overall chain friction, but let's be honest here - it comes in purple and silver which is equally important this time around. To top things off I got myself some purple anodized limit screws from r2-bike.

The crank set is once again a Garbaruk XC with a 40T ring spinning on Kogel ceramic bearings, but this was just a wonderful vanity upgrade to match the new colors as my old silver preproduction Garbaruk crank set was still going strong.

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Wheels
I'm re-using the 1039g wheel set from the Hypersonic version, with their beautiful Extralite HyperBoost 3 hubs and custom polished Sapim CX Super spokes. Of course, I needed new tires and this time I went for the Schwalbe Racing Ralph and Racing Ray combo in 2,35 inch width. Not the lightest option out there, but one of my absolute favorite XC tires as they strike such a nice balance between predictable grip and good speed.

I also have a second wheel set I can use on this bike, as previously seen on the world's lightest e-MTB. The Pi Rope Light wheel set features their Vectran synthetic fiber spokes, which have crazy high tensile strength while still being extremely light. Combined with NonPlus hubs and Duke Lucky Jack SLS4 Ultra 28mm rims the wheels weigh just 945g.

Together with Kenda Rush Pro TR 2,4" tires and Revoloop MTB.Ultra tubes this becomes a super light option, turning the bike into the "SL" version together with the rigid seat post.


Scott Spark RC Neon - Weight: 9,67kg / 21,32lbs
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Scott Spark RC Neon SL - Weight: 8,82kg / 19,44lbs
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How many Scott Spark's can you fit into a single story? As it turns out - one more!

If the full on weight weenie XC and Marathon weapon style of the bike above isn't your style, perhaps you will enjoy another Spark rebuild more that I did a few months ago. This bike takes a different approach, with the goal of being more of a XC light trail bike with its burlier build kit. Simply bringing a bit more fun on the downhills or to inspire you to pop some manuals wherever you have the chance.

For example, it features the new Zipp 1Zero HiTop SW wheels along with a SRAM XX SL Transmission drivetrain and a Moonlight Mountain Gear 4000 lumen light for winter or evening rides. Is it a crazy luxury to have two Spark RC bikes from each end of the spectrum? Yes. But these bikes sure bring me a lot of fun, and the frames are versatile enough for it to make sense with two different builds.

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Does it feel like you've had enough of XC bikes for a while now after that Spark bombardment? No worries, next up here on Pinkbike is my Scott Genius ST 150/160mm trail bike to change things up a bit. Since I'm truly going "full Dangerholm" on that one, make sure to keep your eyes peeled.

Author Info:
dangerholm avatar

Member since Jan 26, 2021
8 articles

104 Comments
  • 127 0
 Those tiny goggles...
  • 209 0
 Pretty sure they must have been bigger when he got them, before he started to grind away all the excess goggle bits...
  • 19 0
 Weight Weenies gonna Weight Weenie.
  • 18 0
 They just look small relative to the thighs!
  • 29 1
 THEY DO NOTHING....
  • 6 0
 @nsmithbmx: #radioactiveman
  • 2 0
 Love the Misfits cap in his profile photo, this guy is going his own way for sure.
  • 64 1
 Came for the short shorts. Not disappointed
  • 43 1
 Was it a big mess?
  • 10 2
 Eeww
  • 47 4
 This dude has such a unique take on how to build up a bike. Mad respect. If he is ever in Squamish let me know, I wanna buy him a beer. 2 if he wears the Lemmy cut offs.
  • 12 2
 Dangerholm is Lemmy (Lemmy is God) reincarnated. I'm thinking this theory has legs...
  • 49 0
 I'll happily buy you the beers if I can have some Jack and Coke myself, I'm not even joking when I say that's my preferred drink haha. Thank you for the invite as well as your kind words, really happy to hear it. And at some point I need to visit that region for sure.
  • 4 0
 @dangerholm: well damn, if you ever make it down to Portland, Oregon, Jack and Coke’s together! My treat!
  • 1 0
 @dangerholm: I know anodizing adds weight but the raw aluminum parts on the builds cheapens them for me. Can you just run 1/2 grips from now on and anodize the raw aluminum? Not sure what 1/2 grips are? I just invented them. You take a regular grip and cut it in half. You're welcome. (Sharpie bike is a honey.)
  • 36 1
 Headset cable routing, I'm outta... JEFFREY'S CHRYSANTHEMUMS THAT'S BEAUTIFUL!!!!!
  • 38 0
 That's probably the nicest compliment one can get in 2024, when the good things overpowers people's dislike for headset cable routing haha. Hits right in the feels!
  • 3 0
 @dangerholm: Single-handedly changing PBer's minds about headset routing - WHAT HAST THOU WROUGHT!?!?
  • 4 0
 [deep movie trailer voice]

In a world filled with heavy, over complicated bikes and unstoppable corporate greed, where headset cable routing is loathed by all, only one man has what it takes to change hearts and minds...Dangerholm.
  • 34 1
 When madness & genius are one and the same.
  • 3 1
 Maybe a future build on this chassis should carry the “Madness” model name!
  • 21 0
 f*ck yeah dangerholm, please never change!

the livery on the last one is A++, i've been thinking it was time for white to make a comeback.
  • 15 0
 Thanks man, really appreciate it! The white one was really fun to do, just a white base, some stencils and trying your best to have a steady hand with the sharpie pen haha.
  • 19 0
 Gotta give props to that steezy crossed up table-top jump pic. Fully sending it on an ultra light short travel xc rig like that is pretty dope. XC isn't my thing any more, but that bike looks great. 14-18K$ range? Looks very "one off," with parts CNC machined from a hard to find and expensive special blend alloy of un-obtanium and can't-affordium? Looks fast just sitting there. I want one. I can see it posing next to my McLaren Senna in the Bat Cave.
  • 16 0
 Incredible work as always
  • 5 0
 Thank you!
  • 1 0
 Absolutely agree.

Also I am chuckling to myself at all of the component brands/names in this article that I simply have never heard of. So cool, and so nerdy.
  • 14 0
 Just when I think I'm starting to get bored/jealous of Dangerholm, I read about him reusing frames... and he totally redeems himself.
  • 9 0
 I'll never ever get tired of references to that scene, literally laughed out loud when reading.
  • 9 0
 Amazing builds! Some times fantasize about commiting to some exotic build... then I just ride my bike.
  • 8 0
 Thanks! And after all, that's the key - just ride your bike. I'm the first to admit that while amazing to ride, exotic builds like these sure has a lot to do with the hobby/nerd aspect of bicycles. Having fun riding is possible on most things with wheels.
  • 10 0
 Came for the jorts. Stayed for the bikes
  • 1 0
 Surely they are jot jants not jorts
  • 5 0
 Reading this reminds me of when I was building cars. Once you see your masterpiece, the brain will start to keep designing and the second you think of something you like, you got to have it. I both respect and get his non stop need to build. Keep on building my dude.
  • 3 0
 It's a shame those Tune Skywalker clamps are discontinued. I had one of them from a German online shop a few years ago and I ended up breaking it (turns out you do need a torque wrench for some things!).
I was looking for a replacement and after 3 months of searching and e-mailing pretty much all the bike shops East of Lisbon (and a couple of them in Singapore and Canada), I found one in a wee shop in Slovakia. They were surprised I was asking them if they could post it to Scotland. Probably they thought I was a weirdo (which, let's be honest, I am).
That clamp is a piece of art!!
  • 2 0
 The Darimo sub4 is a worthy alternate.
  • 1 0
 @EdSawyer: It is indeed. I was looking into them when I couldnae find the Tune one. And being a Spaniard, I have a sweet spot for them...
  • 3 0
 @Bitelio: I have a couple of them and they have worked out well for me. I don’t use them with a dropper, not sure if that matters or not.
  • 6 0
 I love the black and white version; nice spec and looks fantastic.
  • 2 0
 Rhere is not a single thing about any of these bikes that I would want to ride, but I love seeing what the Mad Scientist does. I’m looking forward to the longer travel bike as that is what I would ride. Keep up the insanity!
  • 3 0
 That 40T chainring with a 46T max in the cassette would have me pushing my bike up most hills in my area. Good thing you have the quads for it. As always, gorgeous build. Bike too. Wink
  • 5 0
 I hope he cleaned these before putting them together...
  • 1 0
 I don't like built-in conduits. But, on these bikes that use this system, the front brake conduit should be passed through a perforated stem screw coming out from under the fork headtube, just like freestyle bikes with a rotor.
  • 6 0
 More thighbell!
  • 1 0
 It'd sure add a buttload of street cred to this bling-mobile, with images posted of it slathered in a healthy layer of mud, immediately after riding it gleefully in miles of peanut-butter mud, great goopy puddles, and enough duff to add fiber & reinforcement to the structure of reality.
  • 1 0
 Hmm, it's "ok" ... not to be critical, or less that gracious, and I'd never want to offend, that said, there is however... the slightest bit of dare I say, Oh just out with it ... orange peel ... near the bottom of the head tube, roughly .5 cm to the left of center and around .7 mm in size ~ other than that it looks perfect!
  • 3 0
 Jumps doubles on his weight weenie build.
Proceeds to make a burlier ‘light trail’ build.
  • 4 1
 Dangerholm may be the sexiest man alive and only half the reason is his fleet of bikes. You know the other half.
  • 3 1
 Mr. Dangerholm, next time you do a scott could you do a scottish themed one please, i’m thinking tartan & ginger for the win
  • 4 0
 Can we get nino shurter to ride one of these?
  • 3 0
 Can't understand the zirbel shifters design is not a standard for el. shifting.
  • 1 0
 They do like nice from a UI standpoint. Probably heavier than they need to be though, from the look of it. (Eg it doesn’t need to be a bunch of machined aluminum…)
  • 1 0
 You still need a Blipbox and cables running under the grips (or through a hole in the bars). I guess not everybody likes that. I do love my Zirbels though!
  • 1 0
 @Bitelio: what is the weight difference vs the sram controller?
  • 3 0
 @EdSawyer: I don't really know tbh. The Zirbel shifter itself is very light, but you need cables (still light) and a Blipbox. I have the first version of Zirbels: right one for derailleur, left one for the dropper.
With this new version you only need one shifter (still 4 cables), so they are saving some weight.
Overall, you gain a few grams but I didn't do it for that reason. I just think the AXS shifters are ugly and cumbersome!!!
  • 4 0
 ZShift weighs 36g (with 45cm cable length). The BlipBox weighs 23g. All in all 59g. Equivalent would be two Sram Shifters (1x Derailleur and 1x Reverb Dropper Post). And only 1 battery for the BlipBox in this setup.
  • 1 0
 @Bitelio: please may you share how is the ergonomics of your version? Three questions: 1) does it feel natural for thumbs when shifting frequently? 2) didn't you develop any pain in hands or forearm / elbow after using it a few months? 3)can you upshift / downshift up to all cogs per one shift like AXS can be set? Thank you for your answers if you would see this :-).
  • 2 0
 @northboy: Hi.
1) The shifting feels natural, intuitive and very fast. As with all things in life, it just requires a little bit of practice. The movement of the thumb away from the grip is less than for traditional shifters so it feels better to me. I specially like that I can actuate the dropper post with the nail side of my thumb and/or the fingertip.
2) No unusual problems of pain in hands or forearms at all. I sometimes get sore hands and arms, but that's just because I am not fit!!!
3) I have not tried this particular configuration but I assume yes you can? I like one cog per shift. and I have set the AXS to do 3 cogs at a time (Just need to actuate the shifter for a bit longer, but I rarely do this). If you configure the Blipbox with the App, there are multiple variations. You could change gears with the left hand, or cogs up with the right hand and cogs down with the left one, dropper on the right, etc etc......
I hope that helps!!!!!
  • 1 1
 Someday I hope to see a Dangerholm dirt jumper. I ride my enduro bike and gravel bike much more than my dj bike, but it's the dj bike that i'm always painting and tweaking. I don't go anywhere near Dangerholm levels, but I'd love to see it done.
  • 2 3
 I don't know where else to ask.... Where can I find the "new pinkbike" I'll still come here for the comments but I want to go back to the feel of when I found the boys filming Northshore stuff on Napster downloads.
It's been good xoxo
  • 2 0
 Is custom polishing something I can do to my bikes? I’d love for a polished wheelset Drool
  • 2 0
 Epic Napoleon Dynamite reference! One of the best movie mountain bikes of all time! Ha ha!!
  • 4 0
 How much you wanna bet I can throw one of Dangerholm's bikes over them mountains?
  • 1 0
 I love that in all the riding shots there was no reference to xc, instead full face, googles and loose clothes. Pretty frigin cool
  • 2 0
 Wish I could push a 40T chainring!
  • 2 0
 someone get that bike a sandwich!
  • 2 0
 Ditching pedals would make it lighter
  • 2 0
 What's this cat do for a living?? I can't afford to go lighter than GX....
  • 36 1
 When I was 14 I started working extra at the local bike shop and then full time once school was over. As a coincidence, this small town bike shop was actually one of Sweden's first Scott dealers. So I essentially grew up around the brand, a long with a few other nice brands as well of course.
With the long winters here, every year I built myself a new bike and slowly leveled up each time. Spending that much time on them is also what escalated the whole tuning thing. I worked full time at the shop up until quite recently, and now I put all my focus on the builds and the whole "Dangerholm" thing.
  • 2 0
 @dangerholm: love it. You obviously have a talent and precision many do not. Always good to see the newest "DH" rig!
  • 3 1
 Do you work for Scott @DangerHolm?
  • 20 1
 It started with me being a shop rat at a Scott small town dealer essentially all my life, so naturally I bought and built quite a few Scott bikes over the years. Out of genuine love for the products I kept doing so, and these days I'm an ambassador for the brand.
  • 2 0
 Dear danger, please post your leg workout routine.
  • 1 0
 Forget paintings. I want this bike hanging on my wall!… for a few days and then I’m gonna a ride it!
  • 3 1
 Clean up in aisle my pants!
  • 2 0
 You're a rad dude building killer bikes Dangerholm, keep 'em coming.
  • 1 0
 Always a treat to take in all of the little details you include in these builds!
  • 1 1
 118g for the Björn seat post is 73.3% the weight of my stem, a 50mm Copperhead.

This is levels of weight weenieing I didn't know were possible
  • 2 0
 "At just 9,19kg or 20,26lbs including dropper, " Dropper adds 'Murica
  • 3 1
 Guy must have about 200 mirrors in his house.
  • 1 0
 He can see himself while he's bottoming.
  • 1 0
 Particularly like the drivetrains and also that seat. But those prices man...
  • 1 0
 Are the goggles... doggles?
  • 2 4
 This Clown is such a silly poser a self-promoter who probably spends two hours looking at his thighs in the mirror every day.All of his projects are absolutely unsuitable for their intended use
  • 1 0
 I dunno man...this one just doesn't have that IT factor, you know?
  • 2 0
 Okay.
  • 1 0
 Has he ever done a custom DH bike?
  • 1 0
 Yes
  • 1 0
 He's got the midas touch!!
  • 1 0
 The Garbaruk pieces are sexy
  • 1 0
 Such a Holm-some bike. Perfect to take into the Danger zone.
  • 1 1
 I love you @dangerholm for the Napoleon Dynamite reference!
You fat lard!
  • 1 0
 Vogue, nuero
  • 2 4
 Do you think he ever gets bored of building up the same bike over and over again? Maybe to a Genius or something else in the Scott line up.
  • 1 0
 You don't have to be a Genius to know the answer:

"Does it feel like you've had enough of XC bikes for a while now after that Spark bombardment? No worries, next up here on Pinkbike is my Scott Genius ST 150/160mm trail bike to change things up a bit. Since I'm truly going "full Dangerholm" on that one, make sure to keep your eyes peeled."
  • 1 1
 Is this guy sponsored by Intend, or just their best customer ? Smile
  • 2 1
 He's friends with them. But not enough to get a set of Trinity brakes XD
  • 2 2
 Hanger Dolm
  • 1 1
 This man knows how to po
  • 5 7
 wow what a talent, assembling bike parts on a frame with a different paint. *clap*
  • 1 2
 Copy/paste, copy/paste, copy/paste...
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