Normally I would agree; economically speaking. But I didn't get this for economics, it's more of a time killer/fun thing to do. No matter the hobby, you're always going to invest money into it that will not have a return other than personal satisfaction/gratification. That's what I'm looking for with this.
I would like to see it looking nice, running nice, etc. Doesn't need to be a show stopper, but I want to invest my time and money into my hobby, and see something come from the nothing that it currently is. This is why I'm not down with taking it to someone for every issue. I want to put my hands on as many of the issues as I possible can. The only thing I want someone else to handle are the things I simply can not.
Like the dash. I'm not going to buy a new one, or even a used one. I'm going to fix what I have. Same with the rest of the interior and a lot of the other rust issues. If I simply can't handle it due to ability, then I have a few buddies that will help on the cheap. Otherwise, whether I break it or not, it will be of my own accord.
Ya know?