Cyclocross - Carbon Cross Forks and Rake

I'm seriously considering getting a carbon CX fork for my Poprad. The front runners at the moment are the Alpha Q CX 10 and the Reynolds Ouzo Pro CX (any comments about either?). The "rake" of the Reynolds matches what Lemond says is the current setup on my Poprad (45mm), whereas the Alpha Q has a 47mm rake. Is this 2mm a big deal?

make sure to also compare the axle to crown length between the two carbon forks and your stock steel one... a change in rake and/or crown to axle length can change the trail of your bike... a drastic change in your axle to crown dimension will also change your headtube angle, bb height, etc.

this is a good article about trail:
http://www.spectrum-cycles.com/612.htm

you can build your bike and mess with rake, etc. here:
http://www.bikeforest.com/CAD/index.php#

Thanks for the info. It's sounding like a more complex decision than I had thought.

Quick question (not to be dense), but how does one measure axle to crown? Just want to be sure I get it right.

measure from the bottom of the fork race, to the center of the axle.

i mention this because on my old cross bike, the stock fork was 400mm from axle to crown, but the carbon wcs ritchey fork i replaced it with was 385. essentially, my new fork was an inch shorter, which then made the head tube steeper, which would also lower the bb. the horizontal top tube was then sloping downward slightly. it made the handling more aggressive though, which i appreciated.

the 2mm rake difference probably won't make much of a difference, but i guess be aware how a different fork can alter your bike's handling. :)