Eastern Standard Time

OK, so this has been a *really* difficult rate for me. I vacillated between posting everything ('we want all the details') and just summarizing the high (or low) points, and I ended up with a C because in the end I got what I originally wanted: two running clocks. But they don't run well (not what I paid for), and the process-- the *how* I got them back -- was a mess. I brought the clocks (two very common, off-the-shelf Seth Thomas mantle clocks from the 1950's that belonged to my parents) to the EST store in Purcellville, which is about 35 miles round trip for me, in November of 2012. Both had been lovingly cared for and running fine for decades, but due to parents ill health had not been wound or running for the past five years. I was told by EST they likely needed to be cleaned. I got them back within a couple of months. When I picked them up, they weren't running at the time but I was told they had been and I should just restart them when I got them home. One started ticking right away, one didn't. I brought it back. Picked it up a month later. It stopped after three days. Brought it back. Picked it up two weeks later. It stopped within a couple of days. Brought it back. Picked it up two months later. It stopped running again, brought it back again, you get the picture. I believe the final count (I kept copious notes) was nine separate trips (over 300 miles), about 15 months, and some understandably tense interactions. Sometimes I was told that 'the bushings needed to be adjusted', or 'there was a stinkbug in it'. Once, 3 days after I had dropped it off, I called to ask if it had been looked at yet and was told 'oh, yes, it's been fixed and running fine for the past two weeks'. Finally the owner, Frank, told me that the employee who'd apparently been working on my clock all the first year was perhaps in the wrong profession and eventually left (or was terminated). Eventually Frank said he would personally replace the works on my clock. This took several months. Then the second clock (which we all assumed had been fixed) stopped running. I brought it back, and Frank said he replaced the works on that one, too. Both replacements were represented to me as '7-day works.' One is still ticking and chiming regularly, although the full wind only lasts 4-5 days. The other one is likewise not a 7-day; I am lucky to get 4 days off a wind and it also periodically stops between winds. Both clocks are set perfectly on level, and wound fully. For the record I have several other clocks, including an old, very large grandfather clock. Its wind lasts for 7 days. I had it cleaned 30 years ago, but other than that, its performance has been flawless. Both of my parents' clocks had ticked and chimed and been wound on Sunday nights for nearly 50 years before they had stopped. The works that were replaced were represented to me as being the same that had been in there for 50 years. Yet they do not function the same. I don't know why my experience was so unpleasant or so prolonged. I just know that for me it was a lot of money and a ton of time, too many phone calls, too many excuses, and too much driving back and forth. Having cared for clocks myself for 40 years, I know that they resemble living creatures in that they are all different, and diagnosis can be difficult. But I am sure this could have been handled better. While my experience was labored, fraught with mishap, and unnecessarily consuming, there's absolutely no doubt in my mind that Frank knows and loves clocks in all their various form and design. UPDATE: Three weeks after I picked up the last clock, I found the hour hand lying at the bottom of the closed glass door that covers the face, along with a round washer. I put the hour hand back on and it has not fallen off since, but seriously? I left off a LOT in my review but during one of the many 'pick-ups' the hands on my clock were installed BACKWARDS - that is, the hour hand was where the minute hand should've been. The clocks keep lousy time but there's no way I'm going to mess around with any adjustments. Worse, the chiming on the one clock is intermittent and occurs during the quarter hours instead of on the half. I have no intention on bringing these clocks back to EST -- the $650, all those miles, and out-and-out rudeness was enough. My first review was way too generous.

There are not many people who have a clue what to do about. He new exactly what to do and my clock is now working fine. You can trust them especially when you are dealing with an antique.

Everyone was very friendly, down to the dog that guards the door. They took me back into the shop to show me exactly what was going to be done and the finished product turned out very well. They are able to remove the clockwork and allowed me to bring the rest of it home while the repair was taking place. Because of that my wife had no idea it was being repaired!