I guess a person could raise a small claims action in the local court against the shop, if they so decided. They would need to prove that they sent the equipment in, that it was received, and that the shop has exceeded the reasonable time to respond or complete the repair. Would cost a few bucks if you use a lawyer, but you could do it yourself I surmise. And Tom would respond to the claim by bringing the piece of equipment to court to return and that would be that.
Me, I still believe the shop will come back to life soon and that the first priority will be to take care of the repair backlog. The equipment sent in will return to its owners a tad more vintage than when it arrived. I base this on my ongoing conversations with Tom when I do see him. He is as anxious as any of us to get the shop going again soon.
As for Anders, he can comment himself, but I understand Anders has a real full-day job somewhere else - his contributions to the shop are/were sporadic.
OBG