Steel Flamed Mini Makemake

Last week, I sent a few pieces to my buddies Derrick and Leonard at Steel Flame. You can see a couple of the pieces in a post I made in late April, and the third was a plain titanium Mini Makemake. I always try to do my best work, but because of how much I think of them, I really wanted to do a good job on these pieces. I spoke to Leonard on the phone a few times that day, and he assured me everything was good. Fast forward to a few hours later. I'm down in the shop grinding away in the heat, and the phone rings. I see it's Leonard, and so pick up right away. He puts Derrick on the phone, who begins with, "Please, don't be offended." Well, of course, I almost fainted, but brace myself for the forthcoming well-meaning criticism. D tells me that there's some pitting in the metal, along with some discoloration. I'm baffled by this (the pitting), since it's titanium, and some type of corrosion was what I was envisioning. He said he was going to send it back to me. Normally, I pride myself on being thickskinned and resilient, but must admit I've been bummed out on some level for the past couple of days. Those close to me could tell something was a little bit off, but I kept it to myself for the most part. I had sent in the "One" Warrior ring they had made me to have it resized, and was expecting it along with a couple of the SFI/EKI thumbstuds for my Emersons, and the defective tool. I opened the package, and this is what was there. One pitted, discolored Mini Makemake;)