LugerMan Restoration Services

[cirelaw]

Please Gentleman lets move on!!

[hgreer2]

I'm through, bottom line I just wanted to let folks know they have choices. You can get an excellent restoration in a reasonable amount of time and save 400 bucks in the process.

"GOOD NIGHT, Mrs. Calabash--wherever you are!"
Harry

[silverknife]

Originally Posted by cirelaw

Please Gentleman lets move on!!

While there is a lot of merit to the idea of bringing this to an end I would like to add my thoughts to this discussion.

When I contacted Thor a while ago and asked him to do a museum quality restoration on my luger he promptly replied that he had too much work and would not be able to take on the job. This is the hallmark of an honest man who would not promise something he could not deliver. He could have taken my gun and a substantial deposit but did not. That just confirmed what I had heard about him. I had seen his work at an antique arms show in Los Vegas some time ago where I bought the luger and I had read about him here and on another gun board.

I am very active in collecting handmade custom knives which have been embellished by world class engravers and scrimshanders. Quality work cannot be rushed and no artisan I have ever commissioned to engrave or scrimshaw one of my pieces has ever delivered the work in less than a year, frequently it is much longer. The simple fact is that the artisans who have developed a following and reputation over the years always have an extended turn-around time because of the demand for their work. Obviously Thor has earned a very fine reputation among members of the Luger fraternity for the quality of his work.

If one does not want to put down a substantial deposit than the one can always choose to go elsewhere. Personally I see no problem with Thor or anyone else conducting their business dealings, particularly with strangers, in such a way as to assure themselves that they will be paid for their hard work and talents when they are finished. Whether for a service or a product, business people are, after all, in business to make money. Sure, you could say, "well he has my luger so he has a guarantee that he will be paid." That is not true because it is not HIS luger to sell, it is the customer's luger and trying to sell the gun to pay for his work would constitute crimes on the state and federal level. I am willing to bet that when he started his business, it was not long before he was burned by customers who made him wait an extended period of time before paying him, if they ever did. A substantial deposit can go a long way towards assuring that does not happen. Once again; however, no one forces the customer to seek out his work. If you do not wish to accept his conditions for engaging his services, no one says you must; however requiring a deposit for services to be rendered is a perfectly respectable business practice and to suggest otherwise is simply wrong.

I make knife parts (hilts, collars, butt caps, spacers, etc,) out of pure silver for custom knife makers and for customers of custom knife makers. Each piece is custom made for the particular model of knife being ordered. I do not start the process until the parts are paid in full. It only took one customer years ago who changed his mind after the parts were done for me to institute that policy. If I had a dollar for every person who told me that they wanted knife parts but never actually sent payment, I could buy a couple of really nice lugers.

If Mr. Danner does as good a restoration job for less money and more quickly than Thor, more power to him. In the years to come, if he maintains that level of quality and service, maybe he will earn the reputation and following that Thor has and his work will be in such demand that he too will have extended turn-around times. Perhaps, if that day comes, a "Danner restoration" will mean as much to luger collectors as a "Thor" restoration does now; but throwing rocks at a man whose work is so highly respected and in such high demand that he actually has to turn work away seems ill conceived and maybe just a little mean spirited.

Ultimately, Thor agreed to take on the restoration of my luger. I will get it back when I get it back, and that is fine by me. Like everyone else, I want what I want when I want it, but sometimes you just have to silence that voice in your head and recognize that patience really can be a virtue.

Regards,
Doug

[hgreer2]

[If Mr. Danner does as good a restoration job for less money and more quickly than Thor, more power to him. In the years to come, if he maintains that level of quality and service, maybe he will earn the reputation and following that Thor has and his work will be in such demand that he too will have extended turn-around times. Perhaps, if that day comes, a "Danner restoration" will mean as much to luger collectors as a "Thor" restoration does now; but throwing rocks at a man whose work is so highly respected and in such high demand that he actually has to turn work away seems ill conceived and maybe just a little mean spirited.

Regards,
Doug[/QUOTE]

Thor is lucky to have a friend like you, but I'm trying to educate people as to what they can expect before they throw their money on the table, you are right patience is a virtue I no longer possess, as for Mr. Danner.
I'm not aware if you know who John Martz is, but chances are if you own one of his guns, it was blued by Charles Danner, he is no new kid on the block.

"Thanks for your excellent and dependable work." - John V. Martz, top U. S. custom Luger and P-38 builder, Lincoln, CA

Regards,
Harry

[silverknife]

Harry,

I can't really say that Thor is a friend of mine. Perhaps one day, but at this point I have only spoken with him twice on the phone in the context of his restoring my luger.

I do know who John Martz is but my point was not that Mr. Danner does not do quality work, I have not seen his work and even if I had and did not like it, I would not criticize it in an open forum like this. I have seen people post pictures of gosh awful scrimshaw while exclaiming how much they like it and how quickly they got it back. I just shake my head and move on. My point was that Mr. Danner does not appear to have the following that Thor does so it stands to reason that his turn-around time is quicker.

It was not necessary or accurate to call Thor "unreliable and expensive" while speaking well of Mr. Danner. If you like the work and price and delivery time of Mr. Danner no one would question your right to promote him. Simply put, in my opinion it was wrong to denigrate Thor while promoting Mr. Danner.

That Thor's delivery time is longer than Mr. Danner's certainly does not make him unreliable. He told me that it would be a long time before I got my gun back, so I guess I am hoping that he is "unreliable" and he gets it back to me sooner. "Expensive" is a subjective term. Some people think that Fords are expensive while others think that a new Lexus is a bargain.

If your opinion is that Mr. Danner's work is just as good as Thor's, but his turn-around time is faster, and his price is lower, all that could have been said without the personal attack on Ted's character even if you think that it is accurate. It does not seem to me that this is the place for character assasination and my own dealings with Thor do not support those accusations.

Regards,
Doug