Lol I feel ya. I ended up making and selling electronics kits to fund the hobby somewhat.

I have been using cheap vintage oscilloscopes the whole time.

Not sure what they go for now but $100 for a 20MHz scope and $200 for a 100MHz was what it was several years ago. Cheapest I got off a buddy for $40. I am still using that one.

Sometimes I fix broken ones and sell them. One time I got one that they thought was broken but turned out it was just the basic settings. I like trying different ones so I have gone through a dozen or so by now.

Now* that I think about it, o-scopes are a whole other hobby lol.

Anyway. Yeah by the time you get the test gear and enough sensors and microcontrollers and whatever it adds up.

Right now I'm working on a power supply design for a 50W class D stereo. Found out big toroidal transformers are not cheap. Oof. And enclosures big enough (especially if labeled "amplifier" or "stereo") are ridiculously spendy.