(22-02-2017, 08:37 PM)robotchaos Wrote: Anyone else have anything similar they do or any tips?

Sometimes putting the questions into other words offer some insights.
So if I understood correctly you are doing this:

* Downloading the source of a program
* Using the package manager to install the dependencies
* Building and installing the program
* Remove the uneeded dependencies (that's the step you want help with)

If there was a way to tell your package manager that those packages are installed "as-deps-only-for-build" to something else it would solve the issue, as most package managers have a way to list un-wanted dependencies.

I'm falling short on options here.

EDIT: As others said, the port system of most BSDs does that nicely.