[delucain]

Also, consider your local hackerspaces, co-op workshops, and community centers. Often a reasonable membership will get you access to some equipment that you'd never be able to afford (or at least justify buying) on your own.

I've been a member of the Austin Hackerspace (http://atxhs.org) for a while, and it's paid dividends in saved expense on tools. Plus the community of experts it has attracted has allowed me to quickly finish projects that would take months of research on my own.