"rw" wrote:
The blank of the one rod I've built definitely had a spine, and the soft
side and stiff side were 180 degrees apart. I read somewhere that this
occurs because of the way the the graphite overlaps when it's wrapped on
the mandrel. That sounds plausible to me.

I've built at least 50 rods, and I've always found the softest spine to
be 90 degrees from the stiffest. The second stiffest spine is usually 180
degrees from the stiffest, and they are often damn hard to tell apart.
I usually place the guides in alignment with the with the soft spine, in
the theory that the rod will be easier to cast accurately; occasionally I
place the guides on the butt section on the hard spine for a little extra
power. I have cast a number of factory finished rods that had a rather
haphazard guide/spine relationship, and I as of late I tend to agree that it
doesn't make a huge difference.