Wolfgar,
A soft cap won't be as bad as you think as you will realize when you figure out how crafting works.
Here's Jooky's description on how crafting works:
-Crafting revisions.
Crafted quality and duration are based on:
Materials used.
Player craft skill and associated stats.
Tools used.
Forager and Scrapper tools add to duration.
Trapper and Pioneer tools add to quality.
Luck.
You can make master quality items without every input at master level. For example, I've made master level weapons starting when my weapon crafting skill was level 89. I used VHQ pioneer tools and a mix of master and VHQ materials. The resulting durability wasn't high, but weapons don't wear out that fast if you don't use them to chop down trees. You can make VHQ items like straps with a tailoring or leather craft skill in the 50's.
Lets say we are both trying to make knives using a pattern that requires leather straps. We both have the same high scavenging, weapon crafting and wood crafting skills (you don't get high weapon crafting with out high scavenging and wood crafting) and moderate leather crafting. After an hour or so scavenging we both have four master quality knife blades. You are using VHQ straps you made and I had a tribe mate make me some master quality straps. After 4 attempts, you end up with 3 VHQ and one master quality combat knives. I end up with 4 master level knives.
Since you don't want to trade, you have the only knife you need. I have one I can use and three to trade.
Of course, you won't need to grind weapon crafting since you can scavenge good weapons long before you can make them, but that doesn't have anything to do with soft caps.