I once needed to check a friend's battery, so I bought a multimeter - which came in a clamshell package I had no way to open. So we went to a CVS and bought a pair of scissors, only to realize they were also in a clamshell package that required scissors to open.
Comments like these always cause me to spend 3 hours on wikipedia trying to rebuild industry from scratch using bone tools to work a rock into a knife.
A good safety catch is when you start working your way towards making teflon coated dental floss. Its just not worth it, it’s too hard. Just (ha!) cut your losses.