@DAVID - I did a wrap last night practically constantly packing and at most every 3-4 wraps. Was definitely a lot neater looking, but I'm still uncertain of the tension and I don't want to check too hard and mess it up but trying to line up the guide again required a good amount of force and wiggling.

@KENT - I also am a man of science, and of faith, and appreciate how you value the physics of building. I'd love to hear more of you take on it and how else you apply science/ math to your builds/ understanding of what/how we're building.

The way you describe your wrap - do you mean something like what I shared in this thread [www.rodbuilding.org] ? I'm with you on practicality over presentation, although I will say there is a certain affect on our mood/experience that aesthetics can have - sometimes even a practicality to it like thread/grip color coding technique specific builds. A carpenter may not paint his hammer, but I've never seen a finished house remain unpainted.

This was my first build with a cheap kit so I decided to do ridiculously long wraps just for the sake of practice. It did seem to turn the 5ft ultra light moderate into a relatively fast action haha.

I appreciate everybody's take on all this, there is wisdom in the counsel of many.

If it hasn't been said already I'd recommend filing down the end of the guide foot. Makes wrapping the thread over the guide much easier and it looks for seamless. Mudhole has a good video on it.