Questions for the masses

when i started my 74 duster build, found one for $1400 ,need floor pans, fenders, trunk pan, and rear quarter panels not to mention headliner,dash pad and was green interior, found one for $3500 that headliner was good,floor pans was good dash pad good ,door panels good and surface rust in spare tire area, and it was a black interior,which i was looking for, so if you have the welders, and supplies and want to deal with all the rust, its going cost more to buy the parts ,plus your time to deal with all the rust versus paying out of pocket to start with a good foundation,so i jumped at the $3500. My point is, sit down and count up your cost to get the $1400 one up to the level of the $3500 dollar one.So i would rather see the diamond in the rough and no what i am dealing with than a so call polished turd.