My son asked me to build him a 4 or 5 wt fly rod he can back pack or carry on a bike into small streams in upcountry California. He tends to thrash around in the brush some so I suspect a six-piece 7 1/2 foot rod would serve his purpose - he doesn't foresee any need to cast more than 30 feet. If you have a suggestion for such a blank let me know, please. My Google search was a disappointment.

North Fork Composites just introduced a line of 4 piece S2 fiberglass fly rod blanks. The 7.5 ft 4 weight looks going by the specs and their description a fast strong 4. Aleks said they sold out of their first run of the blanks. I can see why the price is affordable for a USA fiberglass fly rod blank and a 4 piece at that. I have a 9ft 4 weight carbon fiber that is a 7 piece that I find a total pain to put together, checking the ferrules for fit while fishing and then taking it apart. A 4 piece 7.5ft would be less than a 2 ft tube that can easily strapped to a pack. It can also be taken apart in the middle but still lined up if needed to go through brush.

Although I am not a big fan like my brother, Tenkara may be the way to go if he wants it super compact. Otherwise like Dave said its a pain to try to put 7 pieces together straight. A 7.5' 4pc would only be about 23-24" in an aluminum rod tube. And yes those new fiberglass NFC blanks look awesome.

CTS could make one in that many pieces, would be pretty pricey unfortunately. Their Quartz glass is rather nice, and Fiberglass in my opinion is superior to Carbon for small stream fishing. Epic does have a "Pack Light" 5pc blank in 7-6, not a big fan of the color, but I have built out several for customers, nice casting blank.

I share the same opinion as the other gents above, a 4pc in that length is going to break down pretty small, and it will open your options to more blanks, especially if your looking for a blank that might be less expensive.

Phil,
Hook and hackle sells a 9' 7piece 5wt in their "Xi" series. You can also find multi piece (> 4 piece) 4wt and 5wt blanks on the big @#$%& site. Those blanks are noname blanks but I've had good luck with various low end blanks from there and they are very inexpensive. I'm sue there are other choice but I found those after looking for just a couple of minutes.

I have a 4 pc 7.5' Eagle Claw in an aluminum tube that I bungee corded to the handle bars of my dirt bike in the '70s and 80s. I fished for golden trout in the South Fork of the Kern River and smaller tributaries in the CA high sierras. IMO 7.5' is the perfect length and 4 pc is compact enough for a pack or bike.

I just found a 3-4 weight, 4-piece, 71/2' graphite fly rod blank on line for less than a Jackson+Hamilton. Since it probably won't have to cast over 30 feet, let alone 50 feet, it should be ideal for my son's use. Thanks for the "nix" on 6-7 piece 7 1/2' blanks.

Another vote for Tenkara when it comes to short casts and packability. I have a 13ft tenkara rod with a 12.5ft furled line + 3ft of tippet. I can cast around 25ft from the bank without too much problem. You can also get a level line which is a brightly colored fluorocarbon line that you can cut to your desired length. Collapses to about 40cm or 1'3"ish.

when my nephew and i fish farm ponds, he goes to the tenkara rod with a black #10 zonker and out fishes me every time..works great on small waters.