TLDR: Unprofessional communication, hostile customer service, and unorganized handling of…read moreinstruments.
I previously had this shop install an LR Baggs pickup on one of my ukuleles and chose to return as a customer. Furthermore, I was explicitly referred back to Mike by a trusted contact within the local music community from whom I purchased my gear. Prior to drop off, I text Mike explicitly explaining that the pickup was cutting out, a wire retention clip had fallen out, and I had to constantly adjust the inner silver wire to get a sound. He enthusiastically text back, "Yeah bring them both in!" I brought that instrument along with another prized possession, an early 2000s Lanikai six string with a broken neck, and dropped them off on August 26. Upon drop off, Mike confidently assured me that he could definitely repair the broken neck, and I left expecting reliable service. Unfortunately, this experience was entirely different.
To his credit, Mike did an excellent job repairing the structural neck break on the Lanikai. The neck is securely back together, plays well, and holds stable tension with the original pegs and the new strings and bone saddle I installed myself at home. However, his technical ability is entirely overshadowed by a severe lack of professionalism and poor communication.
When I followed up on August 31, Mike explicitly text me stating the turnaround would be "another 5 days at least." I gave him space and waited over a week, checking in on Friday, September 4, and Tuesday, September 8, with no response. After calling twice the next day, Wednesday, September 9, for a standard status update, he became immediately hostile, claiming he was "annoyed by multiple texts and calls" and telling me there was "no need to follow up." I have the timestamped text and call logs saved to prove this completely reasonable timeline. He also attempted to blame his lack of progress on a missing saddle component that he had never once contacted me to ask for during the weeks he held my gear. In reality, I had explicitly ordered the saddle and strings with the intention of installing them myself, and he never once asked about either component before using it as an excuse for his delay.
When I arrived in person to withdraw my instruments and pay for the work completed so far, his demeanor completely flipped. He was suddenly overly nice and praising his own repair work on the Lanikai, unable to match the aggressive energy he safely hid behind over text. The ukulele with the pickup issue was left completely untouched. Furthermore, the shop was unorganized; I had to actively prompt him to find and hand over my instrument case and loose hardware components. The hardware had been placed in a bag that he packaged himself, which he completely neglected to return to me until I asked for it, simply replying, "Oh, it's here."
It is incredibly disappointing to be treated with such hostility as a referred, returning customer seeking service on a previous installation. If you value professionalism, transparent communication, and organization with your gear, take your business elsewhere. There are far better shops in the area.
