slowing down the action

[hookedonbass]

Would adding extra guides slow down the action of a rod?

I am guessing it would slow it down some because of the extra weight.

[Monty]

From my experience yes. I had in my hand two custom Lami Super Surf rods, the only difference was the amount of guides and it seemed the one with the most guides was not as fast.

[surfstix1963]

Yes the more guides the more friction and therefore the more heat buildup going through the guides (lines enemy is heat)( especially mono).It also depends on what the guides are made of.Action of a rod is actually how much the rod bends and where it starts to bend.
I think finchaser is the guy to answer this one.

Fast Action: The rod will bend on the top 1/3 of the blank
Medium Action: It will bend in the top 1/2
Slow Action: will start to bend in the lower 1/3 of the rod.

Fast or very fast: has better sensitivity & hookset because the bend is at the top 1/3 so it gets to the heavier part of the blank quicker.

Medium Fast or Medium:Will give a better casting distance and a little slower hookset because the bend is longer before it gets to the thicker part of the blank.I guess the rod will load better on the cast.
Power rating:Is the line,lure and lifting capacity of the rod which you will see as Heavy,med. hvy. and hvy.the heavier the rating the heavier the line and lure rating will be.On surf rods you will see the power ratings as line,lure and one of the three above.Offshore and conventional rods you will normally see a number or a couple of numbers eg.20/30/50 this is the min. and max. line lb.test capacity of the rod and this will also help in matching a reel to the rod they have line ratings also.

The one thing to consider is line rating keep your line rating within the #'s a heavy rod will snap lighter lines and a heavier line will snap lighter rods this is an important factor especially w/ braids because to get a med.rod your line will probably top out at 20 lb. test and a MH rod at about 30Lb. test so fishing 50 lb. braid on a med. rod thats rated for 20lb. there is a good chance of snapping the rod.
Others can chime in this is the way things were taught to me by a good friend who is a rod junkie. I'm always up for a lesson,Hope it helps. Because I don't know squat about rod building just the basics I guess.