# Two days in business and already getting thretened to be sued over a damascus shun set!



## GetsharpTPE (Nov 23, 2014)

So I picked up the knives told the guy of it would be a dollar an inch. So he told me that he had already gotten them sharpened and the chef knife did not cut right. I explained to him that it had to do with the belly of the knife. I asked him if he would like me to fix this so that it would feel right when used to cut and he told me that he would. I explained to him that it was alter the side of the knives.so after i tell him it will be 20 for the fix he say he wants them all polished. After I polish the for free. Then he tells me that I ruined his knives because the shun symbol is now gone from it and the wave lines on the side are less aparent. He then tells me that I need to either replace those knives or pay him for them or he's going to take me to small claims court and report me to the Better Business Bureau. Help I'm already doing the buffing for free which is already taken about 12 hours on the three knives not sure what to do with this guy but I feel like charging him for the buffing and telling him that if he doesn't want to pay it then I'm just going to hold on to it - until he does. how about that what do you think PS I also told him about the blueing and the FC method for making the waves more apparent and told him that I did not have the FC but you get some although I admit I have never done this process before how about it? Is there an easy way after buffing and is this a normal complaint when the belly is fixed?


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## Dave Martell (Nov 23, 2014)

What exactly are you looking for here?


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## GetsharpTPE (Nov 23, 2014)

I geuss half should I worry about this guy and has anyone delt with this before. Half is there an easy way too darken the waves in damascus because if the guy is going to be a jerk about it I'm not trying to spend a lot more time on it. Also is it normal for someone to freak out when you fix the belly for them and is that somthing to stay away from or how do you handle it? Sorry this is my first post maybe repost also to general for customer grips.


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## Matus (Nov 23, 2014)

It sounds like you took a job (and for all I know may have made a great job, maybe not - I do not know) and have a bad luck with customer. Since we do not know how you did your arrangements with the customer (did the guy even understood what you are telling him?, did he even understand what he was asking you to do?, do you have it in writing?) it is not easy to propose how to proceed.

What however surprises me a bit is that someone who tries to sharpen/overhaul knifes professionally calls damascus etching 'darkening the wave'.

Sorry if I came across a little harsh (I actually mean well), but first time poster that starts with a complain about a customer does raise a little flag.

Maybe you could just post a few detailed photos of the finished knives?


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## GetsharpTPE (Nov 23, 2014)

I am just going to homes picking up the knives. I did my best to explain what needed to be done and in his email he admits to me telling him that it would alter it and that I would be using stones by hand but then after I tell him it's done he acts like he didn't realize it would be scratching the metal. Like I can magic it off. Then I ask him if he wants it polished to mirror and he says yes and then is upset at the process because now he can't show off the shun mark because it was buffed away.


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## GetsharpTPE (Nov 23, 2014)

I am just not sure what this guy thought he was going to get for a dollar an inch.


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## GetsharpTPE (Nov 23, 2014)

Well what do you call it?


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## XooMG (Nov 23, 2014)

asking what one expects for the price is a practice I don't recommend. You could have masked the mark and could have etched the blade in ferric chloride or something similar to highlight the steel patterning. These are things that need to be clearly, clearly elucidated if you don't want angry people chasing you around.

I've no advice for dealing with the customer, but I suspect you'll want to work on your empathy and communication.


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## panda (Nov 23, 2014)

Call his bluff. Sue over knife maintenance, that's absurd.


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## dough (Nov 23, 2014)

most likely cost this guy more money and time to sue you then its worth... really hard to comment on what you should do without seeing the work.

ill quote an old dave post though its not on this forum... (just happened to remember it and it was about shun)
"I have a friend who purchased a well used and scratched to hell Shun Classic from ebay to give as a gift to his future father-in-law as his first kitchen knife upgrade, sort of a stepping stone. he asked me to sharpen it for him and also asked if I could do anything with the rough looking finish. I told him that I wasn't sure what if anything I could do to replicate or bring back the "look" that Shun puts on their knives. You see until this point in time I had assumed that Shun's damascus cladding was "faux" or lasered/bead blasted onto the knives. I thought this because they look that way to me compared to everything I've seen, they just look fake.

Well I took the knife and did some light sanding (see Micro-Mesh) to see where I stood with this and it quickly became clear that I had layers - not a fake look like I thought. I talked to my friend about this and he asked me to etch it and I figured why not, it's already screwed.

So I first hand sanded the blade to an even appearance (600x) then I did a vinegar/ferric chloride mix etch for about 1 min. which was just enough time to remove the scratches and bring out the contrast. I believe I followed that with some Micro-Mesh sanding but I could be wrong, i don't recall. I do remember how well it came out, look just about as good as a new one of the showroom floor. I was really surprised by this and I learned something. I figure that even though it's stainless it still contains iron and carbon and etching can work. I think in the case of Shin knives etching is a good solution to bring back the factory appearance - to remove scratches, etc."


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## dough (Nov 23, 2014)

actually even better there is this: http://www.kitchenknifeforums.com/showthread.php/6474-Damascus-Knives-amp-Re-Etchng?highlight=radio+shack


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## Vesteroid (Nov 23, 2014)

Sounds like you are new to business and are learning your first lesson.

My suggestion is to develop a document explaining what you provide as services and what the expected deliverables are and what if any risk come with the service.

Use this as your order form and have the customer sign it. I also strongly suggest you have a legal entity between your personal finances and the customer. LLC are cheap these days.

I have a contract that discusses things that could happen in my business that I have no control over. This document has saved me many times.


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## toddnmd (Nov 23, 2014)

I think there's some good advice here. For the short-term, do your best to get these knives back to an acceptable condition, if possible. Getting some FC and using it is probably a good thing to include in your toolkit. You can make sure the customer understands the truth that you are now doing extra work and losing money, but are doing your best to satisfy him.
In the long term, I totally agree with Vesteroid that having a written statement signed by the customer can give you a lot of protection.
I suspect a lot of Shun owners care quite a bit about their knives and think they have invested in the best available, yet don't necessarily know much about sharpening.
Good luck--hope it turns out well.


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## USC 2012 (Nov 23, 2014)

Welcome to the forum!


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