If you don't have the money you can try to build your own but be prepared to do lots of debugging.
it will cost the same:
components $15
aspirin $10
total $25

Also, those that "don't have the money" rarely have the most important tool for debugging a 'burner' - a scope. How do you detext that a pulse is 15ns too narrow - or 15nS too wide - without a scope? the most frequent problems with non-working kitchen table solutions that "works" will only be detectable using a scope.

There has been cases of "working" kitchen table solutions that depended on a certain type of PC port, there has been cases of "working" kitchen table solutions that depended on the CPU speed, there has been cases of "working" kitchen table solutions that depended on the Windows version, there has been cases of "working" kitchen table solutions that depended on ....

The common thread in the "working" kitchen table solutions has been that the author did not believe that succesful testing does NOT prove that something is correct, not even that it works except in the environment where the testing takes place.

The only way to make sure something works is by design, that way you may have bugs, but not malfunction because of the environment. There is no way in hades you can test your way past environmental factors, NOBODY, repeat NOBODY can design a test that check for all. The only way to avoid environmental problems is DESIGN and the "working" kitchen table solutions I have seen have all been thrown together and "tested good"

Erik