# Thoughts on the Scott Scale Rigid 20?



## derkluge (Jun 1, 2020)

Does anyone have any experience with, or views on components or geometry of, the Scott Scale Rigid 20?
https://www.scott-sports.com/us/en/product/scott-scale-20-rigid-bike

I'm looking to buy my 4 yo a proper trail bike in the next 4-6 months or so. (He's currently tooling around on a Woom 3, which fits him perfectly, though he's frustrated with how difficult it is to ride up the hill in front of my house.) We probably won't be doing anything too crazy, but I do want a bike with helpful gearing that he can eventually take on some trails. My budget is probably up to $600 or so (but I'd only pay a premium over a quality lower cost bike if it's really worth it). I'm a bit of a noob, but this Scott bike isn't too heavy (a hair over 20 lbs with a kickstand) and checks a lot of the right boxes. (Moreover, it happens to be available.)

As far as I can tell, Scott is a reputable company that makes some good bikes. (This is a higher end 20" bike that isn't available in the US. https://www.scott-sports.com/gb/en/product/scott-scale-rc-20-rigid-bike?article=274940222 ).

I know that you generally get what you pay for, but I'd be interested to hear opinions about this bike from someone who actually knows what they're talking about.

Also on my radar is the Vitus 20+, some other bikes from Chain Reaction Cycles, Spawn Raiju 20, maybe stretch to Woom Off 4 (though the seat height is pretty high).


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## GSJ1973 (May 8, 2011)

derkluge said:


> Does anyone have any experience with, or views on components or geometry of, the Scott Scale Rigid 20?
> https://www.scott-sports.com/us/en/product/scott-scale-20-rigid-bike
> 
> I'm looking to buy my 4 yo a proper trail bike in the next 4-6 months or so. (He's currently tooling around on a Woom 3, which fits him perfectly, though he's frustrated with how difficult it is to ride up the hill in front of my house.) We probably won't be doing anything too crazy, but I do want a bike with helpful gearing that he can eventually take on some trails. My budget is probably up to $600 or so (but I'd only pay a premium over a quality lower cost bike if it's really worth it). I'm a bit of a noob, but this Scott bike isn't too heavy (a hair over 20 lbs with a kickstand) and checks a lot of the right boxes. (Moreover, it happens to be available.)
> ...


I'm a cycling coach for our local youth riding group. The kids that are off the back more often and struggle the most with climbing are the kids on the 20 and 24+ bikes. But these are the 24" Giant and Specialized Riprock models that weight 28 pounds or more.

20 pounds isn't too bad for that Scott 20"! It has the newest Rocket Ron 20" tires too! I would probably upgrade the cranks at some point, but that would be it. Bonus score it is available, most kids bikes are gone until later this summer it seems like.

Saddle height on the Woom 4 is going to be 3-4 inches taller than the Scott you linked. It's almost as tall as many 24" bikes out there.


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## svinyard (Aug 14, 2017)

Yeah that Scott Scale rigid is nice.

is the Woom 4 Off saddle height so high? It looks like the seat tube is fairly low cut. If you slam the seat I'm sure it'd be plenty low.


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## derkluge (Jun 1, 2020)

svinyard said:


> Yeah that Scott Scale rigid is nice.
> 
> is the Woom 4 Off saddle height so high? It looks like the seat tube is fairly low cut. If you slam the seat I'm sure it'd be plenty low.


The Woom website says the minimum seat height at 22.8". I've also seen on thebikedads 
website that the minimum seat height is nearly 24 inches. Not sure what's accurate.

I don't see a minimum seat height on the Scott bike. I see that the Scott Roxter 20 (which I think has similar geometry) has a stand over height of 20.1", which is lower than some other 20" trail bikes I've seen.


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## svinyard (Aug 14, 2017)

derkluge said:


> The Woom website says the minimum seat height at 22.8". I've also seen on thebikedads
> website that the minimum seat height is nearly 24 inches. Not sure what's accurate.
> 
> I don't see a minimum seat height on the Scott bike. I see that the Scott Roxter 20 (which I think has similar geometry) has a stand over height of 20.1", which is lower than some other 20" trail bikes I've seen.


Yeah maybe that is due to some weird US standards for required seat post lengths etc. When you look at Trail Crafts Blue Sky (a gold standard for kids), the seat tube height is identical to the Wooms. I'm guessing its not only a non-issue, but a highlight for the Woom unless I'm missing something really weird. Even the stand over height is lower on the Woom due to the drooped toptube.

https://www.trailcraftcycles.com/product/blue-sky-20/

https://us.woombikes.com/products/off4


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## neva07 (May 8, 2005)

I just got a Scott Roxter 20 which is very similar to the Scale. Apparently, according to the shop it was the last one in the US! So far my son loves it. We're working on trail confidence and it is much lighter than his old garage sale bike. The Roxter has bigger tires and 8 speed which I think is why it is listed a bit heavier. With the stock kickstand it is right at 23.5 lbs. 

One thing I noticed is that the Tourney derailleur has no clutch and so it bangs around a bunch on rough terrain. Forgot about that .


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## CaptainDecisive (Sep 4, 2007)

Well done bagging the Scott Roxter 20. It's slim pickings right now. The cranks and gearing look good and I dig that orange color.

See how you get on with the fat Kenda tires however if you want to play with upgrades then tires are usually the best bang for your buck to lose some weight. Getting a pair of Schwalbe Rocket Ron 20 x 2.25 could save you ~200g a wheel. Adding extra light 20" tubes to the order would save another 50g a wheel for a couple of extra bucks. That's losing a pound of rotational weight which makes a big difference for a wee kid.
Narrow 25.4 carbon bars are dirt cheap used on eBay these days which is another easy way to drop some grams.
Oh, and you can lose weight for free by ditching that kickstand ;-)


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## neva07 (May 8, 2005)

Ya but the kickstand is the coolest part of any bike according to 7 year olds 

thanks for the upgrade tips


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## TimTucker (Nov 9, 2011)

Would be really curious what the weight is on the Kenda Boosters -- last I checked the weights for the smaller sizes were listed as TBD on Kenda's sites, but the larger wheel sizes looked pretty respectable.

We've gone back and forth between a few different tires and my son's Cujo currently has a grippier Vee Crown Gem 20x2.8 in front (~725g) & faster rolling CST Fringe 20x2.8 in back (~575g).

Crown Gem up front was his choice -- I think he might have just liked how much bigger and more aggressive it looked vs. other options. I'm running 29x3.25" Vee Bulldozers on my bike, so I'm certainly not one to judge if he wants to try a bigger tire.

Overall bike weight with a Junit fork is right at 20lbs, so I'm not too worried if it gives him a little better traction & confidence.


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## downtownjoeybrown (Jun 18, 2020)

I think the Scott Scale looks like a great option for my soon to be 5 year old but I can't find one! Anyone know of any dealers that still have inventory?

Thanks!


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