I hadn't seen that Gator Pit story. For the record, my wife bought me a gator pit in ~2007 when I passed my CFA as a congratulatory present.
She went ahead and paid it all upfront because she didn't want to mess with the hassle of two payments.
I got my passing grade in July, and she was hoping to have it by Christmas and surprise me. When thanksgiving came and went, she came to me in tears thinking this guy might have hoodwinked her. The conversation ruined the Christmas surprise.
I had a different experience with my personal interactions with the guys at the shop. I went by the store, and remember talking to him, and was no longer concerned after the conversation. I don't recall the details of the discussion. I picked up the pit some considerable time after Christmas.
The pit is great. Works great. Great price. 12 years old, and still looks great, but I sand and paint it every year. Much cheaper than the Franklin pit above, but doesn't have the double-walled firebox, either.
So, long story short, it takes these guys a while, but they make some good pits. If you want something by a specific date, you probably want to go somewhere else, but my experience was not nearly as bad as that other guys.