I am also a repair technition at an lds and I somewhat agree with what he has to say. I disagree in the sense that my lds will not charge much to screw in gauges.
However, this issue has come up so many times on the board I cannot even count. Your lds is where you get training, air fills, (hopefully) fun trips with other divers, etc. If individuals continually buy on the internet, where does that leave your lds? BROKE! Air fills (a general loss leader) training, and in some cases, even repairs (under warranty) just don't cut it.
Just curious, but is that equipment under warranty? I'm betting it's not.