Originally Posted by
dsaul
Your assumption about the head tube angle is incorrect. A longer axle to crown fork will reduce the head tube angle. reduce the seat tube angle and raise the bottom bracket. Trail will be increased, as will wheel flop. I wouldn't describe it as "messing up" the handling, but it will be different. This is very similar to how I design my gravel frames, so I know the handling won't be bad, but it will have more wheel flop at low speed.
As Andrew noted, your fit on the bike will change and you will have to make some saddle and bar height/reach adjustments to match the position you have now.
I'm not trying to argue with you, just trying to understand your thinking: wouldn't the extra a-c raise the front end, therefore increasing HT and ST angles? Or does the slightly smaller offset of the fork counteract the increase in height and decrease the angles as you said?
I did find a cheaper alternative to how/where I can store my gear while bikepacking so I might just go with that and leave the fork swap for a future date. Thanks everybody so far for your insights!