On-Site Woodwright, LLC — Local services in Indianapolis

These people were recommended by my piano technician.

I emailed and was told their policy was to either: have the customer take photos and there would be no charge for an estimate; or they would come out, take the pictures and charge $65.

The work I wanted done on the piano wasn't easily photographed (I'm a professional level photographer), neither was the damage on a couple of other pieces that I thought they might be able to remedy, so I opted for them to come out.

By "them," I expected the owners to come. We set a time and day and instead of either Greg or Niki two guys showed up.

First of all they did not understand what I wanted to have done on the fallboard of my piano and they tried to tell me it could be done on-site. I've had this particular touch-up done on other occasions and it is better done "in the shop." The other touch-ups I hoped to get remedied were subtle and I'd be surprised if the photos of these areas were helpful or illustrative to the stay-in-the-shop owners.

An antique music box which had been "refinished" several years ago by another unqualified "restorer" will require disassembly, deep stripping and finishing with lacquer. The two guys, took pictures which hardly are illustrative of the scope of this job.

An old coffee table needs repairs on a corner chewed by a puppy and three leather inserts on the top replaced. They paid a bit more attention to the molding on the corner than the fallboard on the piano and the other items they'd looked at, and the photo guy assured me that HE could replace the leather inserts.

A hand made drop leaf table now more than 100 years old needs the top ONLY refinished. It was difficult to convince the two guys that that was ALL I wanted done. They didn't think it needed refinishing when they first looked at it, but changed their mind when an overhead light was turned on.

The final bit of restoration was a corner of a bed's footboard, also chewed by a puppy. I had tried to fix it with wood putty, but soon decided stick shellac would be a better solution. They said THEY, not the owners, could fix that right there, right then, on site with the same wood putty I'd used.

When all the inspections were done, I felt like they didn't have a clue about refinishing (mostly) fine original woodwork (the piano, music box, and coffee table). But I decided to see what the estimate would be for each piece.

Outside as they were getting ready to leave, they told me they could also do the work for me and I understood them to imply that they were hired as contractors by On-Site Woodwright but had their own business as well. That left a VERY sour taste. It was a kind of "up-selling" siding salespersons use.

My assumption was that I would get an estimate and if I decided to have the work done by On-Site, the $65 fee would be applied to the final project. If I decided NOT to have the work done by On-Site, they I'd pay the the $65.

Those were a couple of bad assumptions on my part. After a couple of weeks, I hadn't heard anything from them, so I assumed they didn't want the business and I went about mine.

Then Niki called wanting to make arrangements for payment of the $65. I was confused and put aside returning the call while I took care of other business. Then Niki called again. She was not rude, but she sure wasn't pleasant. I offered my displeasure with the process and sent them a check.

I figure I should get an estimate, since that's what I paid for, but I told them not to bother.

I have experience as a project editor at a national woodworking magazine and recognize a less than stellar vendor when they show...

Probably by far the worst experience I’ve ever had when needing work done on various pieces. Not only did I contact them MONTHS before I received a response, it took a VERY long time to not only get picked up but also for the work to be completed. I emailed several times asking for an update since they required a deposit on the quoted work, and never heard back until an associate contacted me and said he was to deliver the items but wasn’t pleased with the work even though his boss told him to go ahead and send it knowing it wasn’t acceptable. Not only do I find the initial impression problematic I find the lack of response once collecting a monetary deposit completely untrustworthy. If you’re expecting integrity, fair pricing, and responsive owners who have already taken a portion of your money this is not the...

Just had Greg back for a third time - this time to work on hiding dozens of holes in my front door, put there by prior residents putting up window shades incorrectly [dozens of times]. After I worked 5 days rebuilding and refinishing my 122 year old door, the holes needed hiding to make the door completely beautiful. Greg put on his magic touches and bingo! It is perfect. Thanks!

Greg's work was fantastic. The value for the money spent with him was great. Greg knows how to balance his effort and labor (my costs) with the repair efforts to maximize my benefit. I have had Greg repair antique furniture, very high end custom Pine kitchen cabinets, historic wood trim, and new trim made to look old and historic to match the rest of our house trim. I am using him for additional work. That is the best compliment I...