Mashack Frederick Iron Works

Fred is an A+ craftsman and one of the only people in the DC area qualified and dedicated enough to accurately repair, recreate, and restore historic cast iron parts for local homes and businesses.
We used Fred in 2006 to create historically accurate salvaged and reproduction entry stairs for our historic Old Town Alexandria row house. We learned of Fred after seeing his work on the DC episodes of This Old House and had him come out to our house for an estimate. When he looked at our steps, and the work that would be involved, he noted that he had repaired several entry stairs around the corner from our house back in the mid 1980s after a car accident destroyed them. (They all look great, now 30 years later).
Fred provided the estimate for his work (a combined effort to replace both our stairs and our neighbor’s since they are connected) and didn’t pressure us in the least bit. The price was not inexpensive, but after agreeing to move forward on the work, I learned that it’s very true, you absolutely get what you pay for.
Fred spent roughly 12 weeks custom fabricating parts with plasma cutters and heavy gage steel, using salvaged components, and having custom cast iron components forged at foundries in other states. He built the entire set of stairs in his shop based on measurements from our home and had them completely ready to go before disassembling them and bringing them to our house for install.
To save a bit on costs, we removed and hauled away the old brick stairs and concrete base they sat on before Fred arrived, leave him a clear area in which to place the new stairs.
In total, it took Fred with his single helper two days to install the stairs. The first day involved setting the skeleton of the stringers and risers in place, which included a small cement footer pour and anchoring the skeleton against the front wall of the house. After an overnight cure, the second day brought the assembly of the newel posts, treads, and railings. Fred finished off the install with black caulk over all significant joints and a coat of oil based paint.
Overall, our experience working with Fred has been nothing short of excellent. He was courteous, prompt, professional, and most importantly, expert in his abilities. I have reason to believe that Fred even periodically checks on his prior work when he’s in the area. We had a bit of caulk that was separating from one section and I had placed it in my mental notes of «things to fix.» One day I noticed that someone had caulked this small section and corrected the issue. No bill, no call, just a desire to make sure his work will stand the test of time.
DC needs more expert craftsmen like Fred. He is one of far too few, and I can’t recommend him highly enough. If we ever need any custom iron work done of any kind, or if a friend or neighbor is asking about how to repair their stairs, Fred is our automatic go to guy!