Dear Chronicle and Ted Reinstein at WCVB channel 5 Boston,…read more
I'm a long-time, loyal viewer of your show. Thanks for so many great stories, recommendations, and profiles.
After almost 40 years of regularly polishing my antique brass bed, I had let it get very tarnished due to my aging, arthritic hands. In 1923, I saw your episode on local restoration companies, including Scott Ciardi, of Brass From the Past, in Dartmouth, MA. In December 1923, I brought him the headboard and footboard of my 100-year old antique brass bed, to be polished and lacquered. He was not specific about the cost or the time frame, but gave me estimates of "about $700.00, depending on difficulty" and "six to eight weeks". Because I had seen him profiled on Chronicle, I was confident I could trust his word and his work.
I called Scott Ciardi after four weeks, in early January 2024, to get an update. He said he hadn't had a chance to get to it yet; call back in two weeks. I called back every two weeks until June, 2023. After six months, the bed was still not done. Each time, he had an excuse. Each time, he said he'd get to it and it would be ready in two weeks. Finally, in June, I told him I was coming to pick up the bed, regardless of its condition. He would not relinquish the bed, which was in pieces, until I paid him $500.00. He was rude, hostile, and threatening.
It has been a long twelve months of sleeping on the floor, trying to get my bed restored. I subsequently had a similarly negative experience with Don Davidson, of Don's Brass Polishing in Haverill, who had the bed from June to December, and again FAILED to do anything with it. This elderly man likewise had a string of excuses: he fractured his hip; he had a hernia operation; he wasn't supposed to lift anything. If he is this elderly and infirm, WHY is he still taking on work? I got the bed back, in pieces, in mid-December - a full year after I started this project.
Finally, with the bed still in pieces, last week I brought it to Peter MacLellan, of MacLellan Company in Wilmington. Peter repaired, restored, polished and lacquered the bed in THREE days. He was professional, proficient, and most importantly, he was honest, kind, and decent: a true craftsman with integrity and expertise.
Please don't recommend tradesmen who you haven't fully vetted. Please be aware of the trust that consumers put in your show, and the headaches, costs, and fiascos that result when you don't fully vet the companies you highlight.
I strongly suggest that you delete Brass From the Past and Don's Brass Polishing from your roster of New England restoration companies. Neither proprietor, or company, have any sense of professionalism, integrity, or decency. I have posted an abbreviated report of my experience on Google, Yelp, and other social media review sites to help others avoid similar deception, expense, and frustration.
Regards,
Rosanne Kramer
rosanne.kramer@gmail.com
+1 (617) 484-7766
36 Chandler Road
Medford, MA 02155