I certainly don't consider it whining. You have an idea and it is a good one. You'll hit the sweet spot and one little modification will turn your project from a failure, to a great success. Stay on it, and keep us updated! You'll save someone else a lot of head scratching!
On a somewhat related subject... One time I was building a ten dollar part, for my race car. A buddy was leaning over my shoulder, watching, and said, "Buck, I swear, you'll spend three hours building a ten dollar part." To which, I came back, "Yes, Tim, but you see I have three hours of time, and I don't have ten dollars."
Poor people have poor people's ways...