EASIEST is the PF jar method (will post a link in a sec)
this method makes many substrate "cakes" that the mushrooms bloom from, and since each cake is separated from everything until fruiting it lowers your chance of losing your whole crop of 24-100's of jars (you will lose some, get over it)
starting out i would suggest this method, all methods are pretty much the same on cost level.. but the more advanced methods add more steps .. and more steps mean more chances to mess up.. so K.I.S.S when you start.
watch this series on youtube a couple of times, i think its a 4 part series.
it really is awesome
YouTube - Let's Grow Mushrooms! pf tek part 1
covers what parts to use when mixing jars, how to do a sterile inoculation, things like that, its easier to watch then then try to read about it
what you will need to start is to pick up as many cases of Jars as you want
widemouth mason jars, 1/2 pint (although others work, they colonize faster and make a shorter more STABLE cake when moving the tub around) around $1 per jar
a pressure cooker def helps! i have steam sterilized jars in a large pasta pot but it takes longer and your results will be spotty $60 at walmart
1-2 fishtank heaters, these are used to make incubators, take a rubber made tub fill the bottom with water and then put the heater in. then put another tub in (same size) and this float on the water. you put the jars (already mixed and sterilized, and shot up) into the second tub, set the heaters on 78 and walk away for a week or so. $20
the incubators will speed up the colonizing process
thats really the most expensive stuff... just depends on how big you want to go
also optional is a glove box or home made flow hood, for sterile procedures
so here is what you will spend
$1 a jar
$1 per jar for spores ($around $12 for 12cc's, should do 10-12 jars)
$.50 or less for the ingredients (brown rice flour, course vermiculite and spring water)
$2-$3 per jar
equipment wise-
incubator (heater, 2 x tubs) - $40
pressure cooker - $60 to $200 depends on how big you want it
glove box (clear tub, pair of thick rubber wash gloves, epoxy) $20
this is what i would say you'd need to get started, i started with less (no PCer, incubator, or glovebox) but to do it right, and get better results faster, splurge, spend the $100 and get what you need.
the HARDEST part is the inoculation and mixing, and its not hard at all.. once they are colonized and ready to be taken out of the jars and into the fruiting chamber everything moves fast... you will see little pins in a week and as soon as you see pins, in a week they will go from 1cm to around 7" with 3" caps. pick before they veil breaks (under the cap, they cover the gills) unless u want a cap or 2 for spore prints but you want to pick most before then ... or they will drop spores all over the chamber and cause contamination and just a general mess. also they are more potent if picked before sexual peak, arent we all?
you only use the jars for about 2 weeks before you take the cakes out of the jars, and then you can fill them back up and put em back in the incubator for a continual harvest
after your cakes are picked clean, dunk in cool spring water for 24 hours roll in new vermiculite and put back in the chamber, you can do this around 3 times before they contaminate, sometimes the later flushes will be larger and more potent... but increase the risk of contaminating in the chamber and contaminating the other cakes in the chamber... this technique is also showed in the video above
you can clone a mushroom you like to increase your yield or whatnot... pretty simple procedure after you get the rest down
sterilize a jar of Agar or malt (potato or sugar water), take a slice of fresh mushroom, plop it in there and wait for it to colonize, then you can inject that solution into the jars rather then just spores and all jars will be a clone. (will also speed up the process as you dont have to wait on the spores to germinate in the jar. like with MJ)
i really just summarized this as simply as i could, this isn't a clear step by step. but if you watch that movie and a few other ones it links to on youtube then you will be fine. i read instructions on the net for about 3 years before i tried it and it never REALLY clicked until i saw a video of someone doing it, explains it a lot better..
hope this helps and good luck!
Jr.