Sigh... This is one of those situations where the guy heard "the customer is always right" and ran with it.
Seven months after buying two flutes, Angel messaged me an abusive diatribe about how my instruments were horrible and I should give him a full refund. Having had them for the last seven months, I asked for more details...
As it turned out, he had only tried to play once, seven months ago. His tone was quite forceful, demanding and rude, but some people are, so I dug in and asked for more information, eventually requesting a video of his playing so I could personally help more.
After this, I made him his own personal instruction video, found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1HdzTu-GFqU
He did seem to appreciate this, and I didn't hear from him again for a while after thanking me for the video.
Then, he reappeared with more rude messages again about how everything I've made is bad, etc, because this time he had broken something. This is not a common piece to break, and being a one-man custom shop, it isn't something I have extras of laying around.
Still, I told him I would make him one (for free), but it would need to be worked into the existing schedule.
What followed was a barrage of extremely graphic, hate-filled messages directed at me personally. That’s where I drew a hard line: I ended direct DMs.
Where I stand is simple: I’m not a corporation. It’s just me at a bench, making instruments to bring peace and beauty into the world. I will always make things right when the issue is on me, and I’ll always treat people with respect.
I have a thick skin and can understand frustration, but when it comes to intentional abuse, I draw the line.