So, I finally bite the bullet and after a two year hiatus of stalking around, I've come back to try my luck with anomaly. For reference, I'm playing 1.50b3, with no mods.

What I'm not really getting is the self repair/self upgrade system and the plethora of materials, components, kits and tools involved.

I've read the guide, watch some videos, and more or less I get the hows and whats: You get the tools. Then you get the materials by breaking down items with tools. Then you can repair the materials with other tools (Which also can be repaired). Then you get the specific repair kits and repair the item with some other materials that provide bonuses.

Upgrading/replacing elements is the same, but with renting a vise and different kits involved.

So far, so good, but my problem is how is this suppossed to sit on the game as a whole. I've been doing the "classic newbie run" (Free Stalker, running around cordon and Garbage fucking around and slowly buying new items and getting to understand the rules of the mod), but I've spent more time managing the garbage I need for the repairs (and repairing) than doing things in The Zone.

I guess the basics is not hoard everything you can get from dropped weapons and such, but taking into account the humongous amount of parts, items and tools involved on the process, I'm completely lost on how I should manage all of this.

So, any help on how to use the repair system without becoming the center of the game?