Sloan said:
My intention was not to bash on anyone or their product if it was taken that way. My intention was to encourage people to give building something themselves a try, it's a good feeling even if it isn't perfect. That is indeed a very nice table I just think a lot of people don't know what they can build on their own without thousands of dollars worth of equipment.
As many know, I build most of the stuff on my jeep. This table is one of the few things that was built by someone (along with the suspension [installed by me, built by Rubicon Express], etc). I certainly would not discourage someone from building their own stuff, there is a great amount of satisfaction to be gained from doing it yourself.
My point is simply that without the proper tools, you spend 10x as long doing it as you should, and the result is rarely 1/2 as good. To buy the proper tools you put the total cost at, or way above what it would have cost you in the first place. The up side is that you have the tools to use again in the future. Major bonus if you enjoy doing it yourself. If you don't enjoy it....major expense that was not needed.
In addition, if you factor in your time....the cost of DIY jobs goes through the roof. Even after fabricating my own stuff for 6 or 7 years....if I factor in my time at the same rate I would get if I went to work.....the project would never be less expensive than if I would have simply paid some one else....even removing tool costs would not balance the equation.
In short, if you like this sort of thing, and plan on doing more of it, then invest in the tools and have at it. Enjoy it. If you don't like fabrication, don't have the time or tools, and don't plan on doing more of it in the future....pay the money and have a pro do it.
