I use /e/OS without the Google Play Services. I don't use any app from the FAANGs, and /e/OS uses a custom location service and blocks thousands of trackers.

Surely that's better than "nothing", isn't it?

GrapheneOS is more secure, but you're talking privacy here. With GrapheneOS I could run the Play Store or Google Maps in a sandbox, but it would probably not be better than not running them at all, would it?

Good for you, I was also doing it when I was a kid. Actually was even cooking roms and removing everything that I didn't need.

Then I got my first banking app and was decompiling it on each new version, removing checks for root, "compatibility" and security checks, and compiling it back. Then another app came, this time for public transport, and I was reversing two apps, once every 2-3 months. Became quite efficient with it.

Then I deliberately bought pixel for GrapheneOS, installed it and never looked back.

As I have already mentioned: I am not using Android because I like it or I would want it. Sailfish has everything, I will ever need. For myself.

But not for living in this world.

Either you can't stay on-topic, or you don't actually know what ROMs like /e/OS or CalyxOS are. They don't require any work: you can buy a phone running one of them and use it just like you use a normal Android. If anything, it's probably closer to Stock ROMs than GrapheneOS is.

I am not interested in your complaints, really. I was interested in your take about the privacy issues on other custom ROMs, but it really feels like you don't know. And that's okay.

Sure you are not interested in my complaints and I am not interested in arguing with another fanboy (there is wealth of knowledge on the internet and I am sure you are able to google a bit - but then there is no arguing with me, so no point in doing that, right?), had one IlikeKitties enough for a year. If you are interested, install GrapheneOS and compare it, and in worse case, argue with yourself.