I am so disappointed with Ed and Kristi and Ellis Typewriter. Their communication and ethics have been questionable if not down right awful. Ed sold me a Royal Touch Control typewriter for $100 that he claimed was fully restored and was worth $225. I trusted him. After trusting him and purchasing the typewriter, I looked at it online and discovered it sells for $50-$80 on Ebay in good condition. The one I bought is not at all restored. The ribbon is shot and the keyboard is stuck. I should have known better, especially when he showed up in his beat-up car, the typewriter in the trunk, and he told me he was strapped for cash. What is worse is that I think they lost or sold the typewriter I dropped off at their facility. I only wanted him to tell me how much it would cost to get it back to working condition. It was a Remington Model 7 in beautiful physical shape. After dropping it off, I didn't hear from them. After waiting 3 weeks, it took me several attempts to even get someone on the phone to tell me if they had looked at it. When Ed finally took my call, he claimed to be unaware of my typewriter's existence. He came by, saying he had a great typewriter for me to look at. I got confused by his wrangling. He seemed like a nice man but he overwhelmed me with fast talk. Clearly, he knew a sucker when he saw one. Had I traded my Remington typewriter for the one he brought, that would have been ok, though my Remington is probably worth a lot more than the Royal. I fell for his value claim, though, and paid $100 and let him keep my Remington. Stupid me. I felt especially bad when I realized the Royal's keyboard didn't advance. I called him up immediately and he said he'd come by the next day to fix it. He never showed up. He never returned my emails, phone calls or text messages. Kristi, in the office, never picked up or returned my messages or emails. I am left thinking that they are a fly-by-night operation. I feel swindled by these people. I blame myself for being such a dupe but, based on reviews posted about Ellis Typewriter and my desire to believe that Ed was the typewriter genius others and he claimed to be, I let myself in to their trap. I obviously don't know much about vintage typewriters or people! In the end, I would recommend to anyone who considers using them to reconsider or at least to be on high alert. From now on, at least, I will follow the old caveat, "Buyer Beware!" read more
