apa

I'm planning to get me a cyclocross bike for year round use, mostly for commuting. For the winter I would like to use 45 mm studded tires, but most frames (the cross-check being the only exception) don't seem to have enough clearance for this. Now I got the idea that I could get more clearance by using mtb-wheels, at least in the winter. This would obviously require using disc-brakes since the cantilever/v-brake mounts will be too high for 26 inch wheels. There are some cross frames and forks available that might be usable for this purpose, such as the planet-x cross frame available here in Europe.

Is this a bad idea? Are there any compatibility issues that make it difficult or impossible? I understand that the bottom bracket would be lower than intended with the smaller wheels, but since I'm not using the bike off road this might not be such a big issue. (Or would it?)

Landgolier

Lower BB is a bigger issue off road than on. I'd also be worried about crank length -- do the math and see what you get. You may have spacing issues as well.