Have taken watches in to have batteries replaced without a problem.
Brought an antique sterling candlestick in that had broken in half and asked if they could repair and was told no problem.
Their "repair" was a mess. I am by no means a soldering expert but it appears that there were temperature issues and excess solder around the repair. It was loose and broke again when I got it home.
I would have much preferred to have been told they could not do it. Personally I would have been mortified to hand a customer something back with my name on it as having done it with such poor workmanship.
Luckily I am only out $40 for their repair charge
I beg to differ with your response. I asked if you could repair it, you walked to the other gentleman who was working on something, came back and told me yes, it would be $40 and did not say ANYTHING regarding repair difficulties. Had you, I would not have left it as you were the first place I tried. I would certainly have tried other resources to see if it was a consensus. You just happened to be the most convenient.