Workin on my fist rod build -- puttin together a spinning rod and am wonderin what the preferred guide placement is; on top of curve (tip down) or bottom (tip "up") of curve?

Or, does it really matter?

Thanx fer yer input/opinion

Take care and stay safe
Roger

Tip up! Increases lifting power, and the weight of the guides helps to straighten the blank. Others may do it differently, but I like to minimize the curve as much as possible.
Norm

Roger,
Curve down.

The difference in lifting power is negligible.

I just like the look of the curve down better than curve up.

Best wishes

" Or, does it really matter"?



No , it doesn't really matter. Both opinions above are NOT wrong it's really up to you .

I thought the spine determined that.

I always build on the straightest axis with the tip up.
Norm

Yep, tip up. Spinning rod.... guides on the bottom. Conventionally wrapped casting rod.... guides on the top. But always tip up. Let the weight of the guides straighten the blank for you.

Why you would build with the tip down and let the weight of the guides further accentuate the curve in the blank, is beyond me. It's definitely not something I would do.

I also thought the spine mattered. They even make and sell a spine finder.

The spine doesn't matter.

[www.rodbuilding.org]

................

The spine matters on a casting rod. I've had the rod spiral under load when it has not been spited properly.

Once you put a set of guides on top and load the rod it will try to wrist to the bottom no matter how you build it. Anchor the line to something, hold the rod palm under on the foregrip and palm on top on the rear grip, load the rod and release your hands so that the rod is cradled in your hands, what did the rod do again?

I build along the straight axis.

Have fun

I'm with Norm !

Rog

No matter how finicky you are about locating a blank's curvature your efforts will not produce a measurable difference in the rod's performance. If the curvature is so pronounced you immediately notice it you should probably return the blank for a straighter one - just for looks.

Agree with Tom and Phil E. I just CCS measured a fly rod both ways and couldn't find the difference. I have a busy mind, so I build in whatever fashion that will produce the least noticeable bend so I won't tend to focus on it. Most of the time it really doesn't matter because the blanks are generally very straight.

This topic always fires everybody up. It is like the Twix commercial, "left side or right side". Up, down or sideways doesn't matter but one may look better than the other to you. Sometimes you get lucky and the spine matches the curve, but the spine really doesn't matter either. In the end the guides direct the blank how to bend.

Mark Brassett Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> The spine matters on a casting rod. I've had the
> rod spiral under load when it has not been spited
> properly.


That's caused by the lever arm effect of the guides, not spine orientation.

...........

Thanx y'all for all the info -- much appreciated.

Gave my ego a boost, exactly what I thought: spine doesn't matter, curve/straightest-axis doesn't really effect performance, mostly an aesthetic kinda thing.

I'm really startin to get a grasp of the theoretical side of rod building, the physical side though is a lot steeper of a learning curve than I ever imagined, especially if you have no specialized equipment, i.e. reamers, power wrappers, lathes, dryers etc. Combine that w/poor eyesight, clumsy fingers that are a couple sizes too large...

Continue to be amazed and ever so grateful for the wealth of knowledge freely shared on this site. Thank you, thank you to all you pro builders for sharing yer rod buildin wisdom with us hobbyists.

Take Care & Stay Safe.
and
git vaccinated.
Please.
(Washington State just went to phase 3!! of pandemic restrictions... most businesses are back to near normal ops!)
Roger

I believe the spine does matter for certain applications. I set my guides on the belly,from the tip halfawdown the blank, to top to take advantage of the softer, slower action. On the lower half of the blank, I set my guides on the straightes axis, to improve lifting strength. This gives me a forgiving tip that will act as a shock absorber to protect my tippet, preventing it from snapping if something lage hits it. This also gives me the rod strength where I need it, in the bottom half. As far as torque on the blank goes, that's caused by the moment of force created by the lever action of the guides, and so has little to nothing to do with guide placement with relation to the spine, or belly.. From a physics standpoint, this makes sense to me. All remarks, and arguments to my thoughts are appreciated.

Tight lines and frisky fish

RJF