Reading the OP, it seems that you are looking to put together the "best" kit for your expected activity.
If Large Format photography becomes something you do regularly for an extended portion of your life, what ever you stat out with will not be what you are shooting with two, five or eight years out.
As you shoot, your workflow and technique will evolve as will your creative vision. What you think you want to shoot with just now may not (will not) suit your photographic style along the way. Over time you may want to work with a different camera, lens, tripod, backpack, focusing hood and so on.
In the early 1990s, I started with a shoe-string assemblage based around a beaten Speed Graphic with an uncoated bargain lens on a Star tripod : all of it packed into a Jansport book bag filled with layers of hand cut sleeping pad foam. Took this kit to the Grand Canyon on our 20th anniversary. Still have the camera. A number of outfits later, I use a Kodak 2D and a Zone VI. Everything else is different too. But . . .
This opinion is separate from the cost of or investment in gear. It is not about the money.
The single most important thing in my mind, is to put together a workable kit and shoot. your "ideal" outfit will evolve over time. Do not over plan your gear selection. Let your kit grow and evolve as you do.
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