I was never a fan of buying a radio, only to have it expanded, peaked and tuned by someone for a fee. I've purchased many radio's over the years and either tinkered a bit with them myself, or ran them stock with no issues.
I don't 100% trust any of the common names recommended on here and other forums. How can I actually ensure I'm getting what I pay for? People always say, so so...what's his name, will do it right. I have a very hard time believing that some of these tech's (some of which enjoy cult like status) are always taking the time to do each radio's alignment precisely. Maybe they do, but none of us are in the room looking over their shoulder.
I'm not saying the factory repair shop is any better, but if they keep getting the same radio back without a fix, they may get scrutinized by the factory. Obviously, RCI has changed it's ways. They only have one warranty repair center now.
Forum members are usually recommended a select few techs to "safely" purchase "tuned" radios from. If you do go this route and discover a problem with your radio, you'll likely be told to send it in for a warranty repair. Why don't they want try and make it right?