I crafted in Ultima Online and WoW. I vowed to never really do this again. I understand your frustration on it though as you should be able to make some gear that everyone else wants. They usually tie crafting up with gameplay to much in that you can't just be a crafter. I always thought crafting worked best if you can develop a system that if you spend x amount of time on something you get y rewards back. If I adventure for four hours then I should get this much coin, but why shouldn't I get the same experience and money for crafting? Just a different play style.