As I was reading all the above and catching up, I was left with the thought that your ability to do CAD (even self taught!) could be beneficial to other rodders.

Perhaps a local group or even folks here could pass ideas by you and you could work your magic for a simple donation.?.?.?

Not a fee but a simple donate what you feel it's worth platform. It could put some "fun money" into your pockets or even help fund the project. Plus it may help find "like minded folks" who could help with your project? A local car club for instance??

A simple ad posted at a local supermarket.. or a ad on craigslist? Using your ability with the program could potentially help your project move forward.

Or perhaps it's still to early, and I haven't had enough coffee....