The Myth of Cost Savings

[bruinfan]

i spent another Benjamin at noah lamport for seconds silnylon
YET i have not complete a DIY tarp.
im hookd on great deals and praying i can make it
im over a grand in gear but am not even close 2 setup.
no bugnet. curtains gorilla tape togetherd. dont work well.
gearguide 14'ridgeline leaks. and way too long.
tablecloths flops in win. pluqTQ escapes my grasps every nite. same with pillow. mods needed.
underquilt.com still has pins. im need 2 sew close.
Spool of 7/64amsteel. wish i had thicker cord 4 rope swing into water. 1/4 or 3/8" who knows
if only i had known 2 buy nice gear and use it then i wouldnt b going on to hammockforums everyday

[matthew2000tx]

Nice point. As an amateur astronomer who builds telescopes I have dealt with same thing there in that hobby... but then again sometimes I end up spending more building a telescope than what commercially built one would have cost... I usually chuck it up to an investment in education.

[lokbot]

Yeah I built my lady a uq, hammock, hammock, tarp, and suspension, for about $150. All of her gear works as good or better than the warbonnet tarp, warbonnet hammock, jrb, uq, that I own. I'm planning on selling my gear and making a UL bridge hammock, cuben tarp, and diy quilt.

I guess some people are more gifted than others at saving money by doing things right the first time. It definitely helps having all of the great sources on these forums to do your research with. I also like to look at dimensions given by manufacturers to make sure I'm going in the right direction.

I'm not a gram weinie. I count ounces. I did the wonderland trail earlier this month in 6 days. I had two days with over 6000 feet of elevation gain. I had an 18 mile day with a measly 3500 feet elevation gain that crossed snow fields.

Hanging in camp is fun, but I'd rather hike and see beautiful scenery for 10-12 hours than sit in camp all day.

-Loki

[Dev]

That was a very interesting read. I can say that it all adds one way or another but doing a DIY I think is worth every penny because that gear becomes more special and is one of a kind.
Thanks for sharing!
Dev

[swankfly]

Plain and simple...we DIY in effort to do it ourselves, sense of satisfaction and maybe trying to save money. The one lesson I learned from my Dad, you can always do it cheaper, it's just over and over again. My Dad was great at doing it cheaper. I always prefer to spend the money on someone else who has already made all the mistakes for that design. Spend it up front and reap the benefits.

Ocasionally I find myself falling into the trap of, Oh that's ridiculous, surely I can do that myself cheaper. My ah-ha moments are usually in line at Joanne's, hobby lobby, or some other store I have no business in...

Write the check, enjoy the moment, god bless all you DIY'ers!

[BIG JEFF]

I always say I have more time than money. If I get a good deal on materials its DIY. If not its store bought. A little research goes a long way.

[AT Life]

been dabbling in the DIY sector recently and I can also attest that the cost adds up quickly. If you already posses all the tools to the trade then the startup cost aint too bad. I dont think someone should get into DIYing their gear because they are trying to save money but rather to make custom gear for themselves...If someone was planning to make more than just one piece of gear then the cost isnt so bad compared to buying.

[mudsocks]

I feel my DIY experience has been one of real cost savings. To the best of my memory this is the complete list of supplies purchased. I've included the "hidden" costs such as supplies, shipping and taxes.

Hammocks:
4 Crinkle Taffeta Tablecloth 60x126" (various colors)
$51.96
20% off - storewide
$10.39
Shipping:
$6.95
Subtotal
$48.52
(tableclothsfactory.com)

Whoopies, structural ridge line:
120' Samson Rope Amsteel Blue 7/64"
$27.60
180' Spool Samson Rope Lash-It 1.75mm
$20.96
Sales tax
$2.42
Subtotal
$50.98
(Local pickup from Redden Marine)

"Fronkey style" Bug nets:
2 Sheer Voile Panels 59"x 84"
$8.18 (inc shipping)
10 Yards 1/16" Black Tubular Shock Cord
$3.58 (inc shipping)
(ebay purchases)
8 Sheer Voile Panels 59"x 84"
$39.76
Sales tax
$1.98
(Wallyworld)
10 Barrel Style Cord Lock
$2.50
(strapworks.com)
Shipping (shipped as part of tree strap order)
Subtotal
$56.00

Tree straps:
60' Lightweight Polypropylene 1 Inch
$9.00
Shipping
$4.02
Subtotal
$13.02
(strapworks.com)

Sewing supplies:
3 Spools Coats & Clark Outdoor Living Thread, 200 yds (various colors)
$14.91
Singer Sewing & Craft Scissors Set
$7.54
Singer Universal Regular Point Sewing Machine Needles, 10/Pkg
$5.40
Sales Tax
$1.39
Subtotal
$29.24
(WallyWorld)

Toggles:
8 Aluminum arrow shaft "leftovers"
$0.00
(local archery shop)

Total for 4 hammocks, 4 bug nets, 4 sets of tree straps and 4 sets of whoopies and 4 pair of toggles
$197.76
Adjusted Total
$181.60

Price per hammock, ridge line, bug net, whoopies, tree straps and toggles:
$45.40

The 180' spool of Lash-It! was used for multiple projects (continuous ridge line & soft shackles w/ prusiks for tarps). Approx 40' of Lash-It! was used for 2 adjustable and 2 fixed ridge lines. 40' of Lash-It! at $0.12 works out to $4.80.

I made 5 bug nets. The first one at a cost of $8.18 proved to be a failure as the dimensions listed on ebay did not match reality. I've cut tarp skins from the material (need to pin and sew) so it's not a complete loss.

So how does $45.40 stack up to bigger vendors like Byers, Eno, etc? Our cottage vendors?

Could I have done it cheaper? Probably if I really shopped around for deals on nylon. All these materials are readily available at a fixed cost and used by many other DIYers on HF so I think it's a pretty representative.

[the_lorax]

Being now part way through my DIY fest of 2 Climashield TQs, a DL hammock with Bugnet & hammock sock I think the answer depends very much on how you value your time. I'll have paid for the materials around $150 which is a good deal cheaper than buying. But time wise I've probably gone though several times that worth of labor already - and also enjoyed every minute of it (well most of them) so in my mind that's a wash.

[XTrekker]

From my experience, I think the savings can be quite significant depending on what you compare it to..If you compare a DIY hammock/suspension to say, a Cheap ENO, then of course it is cheaper to just buy pre-made. But if you compare the cost of a 0°F TQ or UQ then I would say the diy saves a large amount of money, especially when it comes to DIYing gear for multiple family members. The savings can be huge. If one were to DIY all his/her gear from hammock to Quilt, I would say the savings would be in the hundreds of dollars. I was able to make me and my wife TQs that each had 16oz of 850 fill down in it for under $300. Even if I had had to buy a sewing machine, I would still have saved money compared to vendor pricing, and I would have ended up with a sewing machine out of the deal. Luckily I already had a sewing machine.

DIY is cheaper if you plan to DIY more than just a basic hammock.