Folklorico Percussion Drums

So, I received a mass-​text last Tuesday requesting a Unilocal review for 10% off a future order with the company. Given that things between Christopher and I went sour, I thought this was an odd thing to do. Regardless, here’s my review:
I contacted Christopher in February of 2013 with an inquiry about custom drum shells. I was specifically looking for stave constructed shells as I had heard great things about their tonal qualities and was scouring the net for a company offering great prices (which, I will admit, Christopher does have). He got back to me very quickly, and we discussed options over the phone.
After several months of discussion, I decided the best thing to do was to visit him personally to get an idea of how he operates. My girlfriend and I were already going to be taking a vacation in California, so we added a trip to Christopher’s place to the list of things to do. While there, he showed me (and allowed me to play) his own custom made kit, along with other pieces of percussion he had built. After discussion of various ideas and options for my shells, he cut me a piece of padauk (the wood I eventually decided on) to take home with me, then I departed.
On July 29, 2013 I received a text message with a picture of the completed shells with the finish I requested followed by a call to discuss shipping options. His wife was the one that called me, and, when she asked me what company I preferred for shipping, I asked her for her recommendation. She told me UPS has always been good for them, so I agreed on that (and nothing more, might I add). When on his way to ship out my shells, Christopher accidentally dropped the box which caused a crack in the bass drum. This delayed shipping as Christopher opted to remake the shell from scratch; I had no problem with this.
On September 13, 2013 I finally received the package from Christopher, but the box was heavily beaten (despite several «Fragile» labels around the box) and looked like other boxes had been stacked on it. When I opened it, my bass drum was in pieces, and, upon removal of the other shells, found that the snare drum was cracked, as well. I immediately contacted Christopher about this, and he contacted UPS. He got back to me and requested I keep the box as is and put the broken pieces back inside to ready it for pickup. He advised I keep the shells that weren’t damaged — I did.
UPS picked up the package on September 27^th, and things started to go downhill from there. Christopher started discussing replacement options, as he wasn’t confident that UPS would refund the amount he claimed (which I later found out was true, because he never actually added insurance to the package, and could only receive the minimum coverage — which he was issued, but never picked up according to the UPS representative I spoke with that worked with him). His «deal» for me was to split the cost to re-​make the bass and snare drums. I eventually called him back about this plan and told him I disagreed with it because I didn’t understand why I should have to pay more for something he was directly responsible for (he also opted out of adding extra packaging, despite having it recommended for my shipment). I suggested he either make the shells at no extra cost to me, or I ship back the remaining shells for a full refund. He had no interest in either option. He claimed that he shipped my package to my specifications, which is certainly not true because I would have wanted him to insure it AND add extra packaging). After a failed attempt to take him to court, I decided to give up on the whole thing and try to salvage what I have left into a smaller kit — hopefully it sounds good. I’m taking this whole thing as a lesson to learn from, and I thought others should be made aware of my experience so the same thing doesn’t happen to them.
Thank you for reading.
— Ryan