I know I sound like a party pooper at times with my comments about saving money by DIY gear making. In general, I think the cost savings is an elusive achievement.
Quite a while ago I came across a book which illustrates my point very effectively. I doubt it is still in print as it was one of those mock-u-mentory books. The title was "How to build a $100,000 house for $250,000." It started from the basic beginning, (buying land) and followed the process through to the completion of the house (in the third location purchased for said house) all the while touting the wonderful savings you would experience during the process. Needless to say, the carnival of errors outlined in the book were intended to be humorous but did bear a striking validity in the grand scheme of things.
My first hammock was cheap-o Wal-Mart fabric bin hammock (when Wal-Mart still sold fabric.) It was a screaming disaster. I already had all the tools and equipment in my wife's sewing shop. So the "savings" would be significant right?. I had been sewing for years so I knew my way around the thread injector. But the design was fatally flawed. (Too short, too narrow too this, too that and other 2's thrown in. So... $9.00 was down the tubes. Still... not a bad step into the world of cost savings. The second hammock (after reading more about DIY hommocks here) was only a mitigated disaster. I did manage to make another cheapo WW fabric hammock the proper length and a better width. But not a good fabric choice all in all. Now I don't remember what the problem was. It was a while ago. It would work as a hammock but not a nicely as I had heard they should. So I started again. (Another $12 down the tubes.) Up to $$21 for the project so far. Still not bad for saving a ton of money right? (so far I was under the cheapest commercial hammock but still no suspension. ) My third hammock was more successful. The fabric was not WW cheapo. It was Joanne bargain bin but still upwards of $3 a yard. I finally reached the end result of a good basic top loading hammock at a cumulative cost of around $45. Adding in a substandard suspension (because I was going to save money) I was in the neighborhood of $60 total. Three sets of cheap webbing later (stretch, breakage and wear) and I was looking at an investment bordering on the $90 threshold.
Still no bugnet. A requirement for me and my needs. I'm sure by now you can see where I am going. Later I bought a Skeeter Beeter for my daughter for ~$60 (less than I had invested in my own projects.) It was complete with bugnet and a suspension (not a satisfactory one it turns out but more seviceable than my earlier attempts.)
Let's just say I could have purchased a reasonable system with bugnet, ready and professionally made for less than I invested in all my attempts. I have not even touched on my foray into Bridge hammocks nor charged anything off to my labor.
Do I regret the efforts? Not at all. Did I have fun? Tons of it. Did I save money? Not a penny. Is my experience unusual? I doubt it.
This is not a condemnation of DIY. I've been a contributing member of the DIY forums for a long time and I don't plan to stop now. But the myth of cost savings is out there and still in top form. I'm just suggesting it is an elusive beast.
Bookmarks