Cactus Music
Overall I just wonder why you would use a stereo track at all. As Dave said way back, use 2 mono tracks. 
The only thing I ever use a stereo track for is when importing a clip or a whole song. 
I could also see if I recorded the output of a hardware synth or guitar processor I might use stereo. But I would most likely use 2 mono tracks there as well. 
Think about the old tape based machines. 4, 8, 16 or 24 mono tracks. All returning to a desk with all mono channels. 
Best if each mike has it's own mono track. 

Based on what I am seeing I agree. When I set up the Overheads, it was just  a natural thing to capture the stereo room sound also since it is a nice sounding room. But I am thinking from here on out, all mono. I still have no explanation for why the recording/clip will pan in one project but not the other. Inquiring minds want to know.

bitflipper
Pan laws only affect loudness compensation (left and right) as the track is panned, not the ratio of left to right, which is what determines the track's virtual location in the panorama. 

I understand pan rules/laws are focused on the amount (in dB's)  gain/loss as a signal is panned from center. Like the 3dB rule (I think that is the Sonar default. No?) I believe SSL uses 4.5dB  because they are normally installed in nearly perfect rooms. Choosing the rule to use is also directly related to the control room acoustics. Is that not correct? 

Bristol_Jonesey
I don't think the various panning law options have changed for many years in Sonar.
 
Does your board have a polarity/phase inverse switch? Check that both tracks are set the same way.

Yes I have a phase switch on each channel. Mics are in phase. Fwiw, So it is clear to all,  I am using on the drums the following mics: 
SM57 on snare.
AKG D112 on kick - inside. Front head is off and kick is wrapped in a moving blanket. the
3 Sennheiser 421's on toms.
Pair of Shure SM81's on overheads at about 7'6"" high and approximately 4' apart. (awesome mics for the money, btw)
I do not mic the hats with their own mic. Overheads and snare mics pickup plenty of hi-hat. 
Pres used are the board's channel pre amps. The board is a Toft ATB 32. Here's a pic.: Toft ATB 32

The question Cactus posed was: why ever use a stereo track? I can think of only two reasons: either you're dealing with a prerecorded stereo sample, or you want to be sure to maintain the precise relationship between the two microphones as recorded, throughout the process. 
 
As for why SSL chose the -4.5db center, I'm guessing it's just a compromise between the two most-common pan laws, -3db and -6db. On hardware consoles, the pan law is usually fixed, determined by resistors soldered in place. One group of people prefers -3db center, another group likes -6db, so the manufacturer says here ya go: -4.5db. That'd be my guess, anyway.
 
IMO the "correct" pan law is either -3db center, or no correction at all. The former emulates how sound really moves through real space, the latter accepts that it's not a real space at all and therefore real-world rules need not be applied.
 
 
 
 

Channel tools cured it!  Thanks all.

whoops spoke to soon.  The guitar track that was correctly recorded in stereo is now choosing to manifest on the left channel.  So of course I injected Channel Tools into the problem, which didn't help.
 
By the way, X3 crashes regularly upon transport start.