J.D. Watchworks

Great job in replacing the movement of my Ebel Classic. My watch came back to me looking and working like new, Jules, you are the greatest

After a very frustrating experience with Breitling’s service center in CT I came to Julius for help with a problem Breitling itself couldn’t resolve. I had my watch back in 10 days and it works perfectly. Great experience all around.

My 11 year old Breitling SuperOcean stopped working while exploring the Society Islands. Wouldn’t wind and the auto failed as well. This is my everyday watch and the case/​bracelet has taken some abuse, showing scuffs and scratches.
Quick search on Unilocal and JD Watchworks is factory qualified for repair. Quote was more than reasonable and my watch was ready to go in 6 weeks. Julius even buffed all the stainless and my watch looks like it came out of the box for the first time. Nice and shiny with accuracy of a few seconds per day.
I’m more than pleased.

Julius is so good that I frankly don’t want to tell anybody about him. He is inundated with business — as should be expected. He is a master craftsman working in a dwindling field. If he ever retires, I simply don’t know what I will do.

Excellent! A true professional. Julius fixed and installed a new strap on my Breitling Super Avenger for free. You can’t beat that price. I’ll certainly be back next time I need a more extensive service.

My experience is similar to that of Nicholas W. A while back, I sent a Breitling Crosswind Special in for a full service, as the time was starting to run too slow. The quote I received was about $ 450, with an estimated turnaround of 2 weeks, which I was fine with.
When I got the watch back, I noticed that the watch was still running slow like before, and the watch bracelet had not been polished (which is part of the full service). So I contacted Juliusz, and he told me to send the watch back. I did (while having to pay for the postage myself), and received the watch back after about a week. Now, while the watch was keeping time okay, there were specks of dust under the dial and deep scratches on the caseback around the edges where the case needed to be opened. It was as if they didn’t have the right tools to open the case, and instead tried to force it open.
Not wanting to deal with them again, I took the watch to a Breitling boutique for them to inspect. They opened up the watch, and surprisingly told me that the watch looked like it had not been serviced at all. The lubricant wasn’t fresh and the components weren’t cleaned. So they sent the watch back to the Breitling factory for me to have everything sorted out.
All in all, my experience with JD Watchworks was disappointing. It’s not even the amount I had to pay, but that my watch was treated so poorly. I’m sure they are able to replace batteries in quartz watches just fine, but if you have a Breitling with a big-​date chronograph or more complicated movement, I’d suggest elsewhere.

I have been taking my watches here for over a decade and have always been surprised, Julius never tries to sell you something unless you need and on a number of times, I have asked whether I should service my watch. His answer is only yes if he believes you are wearing it enough. This is not the typical answer you would get from Rolex who is always tries to sell you something extra. His prices are fair and he really cares about his work. Take your watches here!

I found out my watch ran out of batteries in the morning but I wore it work anyways. I found this place on Unilocal on my way back from lunch and they were able to change the batteries within 10 minutes! it was awesome. They also take credit cards =) Highly recommended for small fixes.
$ 10.81 for a battery change. battery and tax included.

I have had 4 Breitlings serviced or checked out by Julius. My first was the Chronomat Evolution and after calling Brietling on east coast and JD Watchworks, Julius was quicker turnaround and cheaper. (cost not the most important factor)
I even once drive from SD up to SF to buy one of my Bentley 6.75s — seller met me first thing in morning at Julius’ shop where he opened watch to check authenticity and timing. Because I was already there I asked Julius to polish and perform any needed service after I paid for watch.
I guess I have been lucky because my turnaround has been under or at most a month. One time I took picture of lug that came off (cosmetic, not for functionality) back of one of my 6.75s, so he had me take a photo and send him so he could see what I was talking about and order the part. That took a while for him to get the part (6 – 8 weeks, I think I recall), but he didn’t have me send it in until he got the part, so I could wear the watch while part was on order, and once he got part turnaround was about two weeks on that one.
As someone else wrote, I cannot recommend JD Watchworks highly enough. I have a friend who I also has a Breitling, and referred him to Julius. And he was also very please with the quality work and fair price.

I dropped of my watch to have the band adjusted and have my old spring bars replaced.

The reviews for this place were dead on — excellent work, but minimal/​slow correspondence.
I had a friend drop my watch off for repair/​maintenance, and another friend pick it up once it was completed. The total time for completion was upwards of 3 months. I tried contacting Julius (owner/​watch expert) on multiple occasions for status updates, but never received a call back. After close to 3 months of unanswered voice mails/​emails, I started to call him daily, in hopes he would answer his phone. He finally answered one day, and was very professional and apologetic. He promised to have the watch completed within a week from our conversation, and followed through as promised.
I know you are probably wondering why such slow/​non-​existent responses would earn him a 4 star rating, but trust me, he deserves it. The big thing for me is that I sent my watch to him knowing what to expect. Multiple reviewers noted his slow response/​work time, and still gave him 5 stars. I did not NEED my watch back right away, and decided beforehand that it would be worth the wait. I did eventually start to get somewhat antsy/​annoyed at the lack of status updates, but tried my best to stay patient.
In the end, I was more than satisfied with his work. My watch looked and worked like new, and I haven’t had any problems with it since (I waited a few weeks to write my review, just in case). Julius does not run a big factory with a quick turnaround time. He is basically a one man show with very limited hours. He does excellent work and is professional and courteous, once you are able to reach him. Unless you are in a rush, or need consistent updates, I highly recommend Julius for your watch repair needs. Just go into it knowing what to expect, and you will be happy with what you get.

I’ve been taking my Breitling to Mr Dabrowski for several years. He’s always extremely thorough, competitively priced and goes above and beyond… I just took my watch in because I had lost a screw from the band and he replaced it on the spot, checked the others and found two other loose screws, told me that I should keep an eye on the titanium because it’s a soft metal and charged me nothing, just a handshake. I was blown away. Can not recommend him highly enough!

I had read reviews and saw that they were mixed, so I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised. Most we’re good on the the service side, on the expected repair time and communication they were not so good. Julius said the timeframe needed to repair my Breitling Navitimer would be 6 weeks. The watch was gone approximately 3 months. Multiple calls and emails were unanswered, save once. Upon receiving my Watch back the chronograph worked intermittently. I called Julius he told me to send it back — something about new seals and lubrication. Thus assuring me it would be a 2 day turnaround. I assumed a week total to account for shipping. Surprise Surprise-​6 weeks later I received my watch and although it works fine. I missed the opportunity to wear my watch for the holidays. I feel due to lack of communication and promises that we’re unrealistic I can only rate it begrudgingly 3 stars.

Sent my six year old Chrono Cockpit in for thorough cleaning, service, and replacement of leather strap. I use this watch on my farm in heat, cold, dirt, water, and sweat. It came back like new! All was done by mail. I’m a happy camper.

Having few choices for authorized service, I was nervous.
There was no need to be. Mr. J.D. (sharp dressed gentleman) took my watch, as I was able to drop it off. Got it back cleaned, running perfectly, and seemingly new.
His office could double as a hospital. Perfectly organized and clean.

The service you get from JD Watchworks, is second to none. Mr. Dabrowski is definitely a timepiece craftsman!
I purchased my Crosswind Special several years ago, and because of various reasons, I was never really able to keep up with the maintenance a timepiece like this requires.
And as you might expect, it eventually started running slow.
So, I go to
and look for a service center. JD Watchworks in San Francisco… yikes! I live in Oregon!
A few weeks pass, but eventually, I find myself using Google Maps to find JD Watchworks in San Francisco…
Thinking Google Maps is wrong, I drive by the building a couple of times… mostly because I kept thinking JD Watchworks was going to be one of those stores you see in New York with the glitzy outside… but no, just 210 on the side of the building.
I make my way past the doorman, ride the elevator to the fifth floor, and find my way to JD Watchworks. Mr. Dabrowski buzzes me in. I hand him my watch, and he immediately recognizes the model — which is very reassuring to me. I tell him of my timepiece neglect, and ask him for a quote — to which he replies $XXX, which includes services x, y, and z. He then fills out the form — a very nondescript receipt with JD Watchworks stamped at the top — checks off a few boxes, and hands it to me.
I double check the information, and ask, ‘Can you ship the watch to Oregon?’ He says, ‘No problem, I use USPS insured, however, it’ll be an extra $XX.‘
With that, I drop off my Breitling and leave. Still wondering if I did the right thing, I ask the doorman on the way out of the building, ‘Has that business (JD Watchworks) been there long?’ To which he replies, ‘He’s been there longer than I’ve been here, which is 15 years’…
A few weeks pass, and the package from JD Watchworks arrives at my house. With some trepidation, I open the box. Inside the shipping box, is another box — a really cool neoprene black box with a zipper around it, and a Breitling logo stamped on top. I unzip this black box and find that it is lined with a really soft Styrofoam, with my watch placed on a Styrofoam ‘wrist’. I immediately unclasp my watch and pull it off of the Styrofoam.
I’m stunned. My old watch looks brand new. I suddenly remember what made me purchase the Crosswind to begin with… simply beautiful.
I adjust the time, and place the watch on my wrist…
It’s been several weeks now, and I can attest my Breitling Crosswind functions perfectly.
I would without hesitation, recommend JD Watchworks for any Breitling repair or maintenance work you may need!

I was reading the other posts here, and it seems I am in good company.
I have had my Breitling Chronomat for over 10 years, and never had any maintenance done on it — I didn’t even realize till recently that it needed maintenance! It was not keeping accurate time, and one of the gold prongs had broken off (I wear my watch, I am not one to keep it on display in a box!), so I looked online and found that the only authorized Breitling repair shop in California was in San Francisco.
I called J.D. Watchworks, talked to Julius (he answered the phone himself, and has every time I have called), and sent my watch up to him. He gave me a very reasonable estimate, took a little longer to fix than originally discussed, and I just got it back today — FRICKIN’ AMAZING!!!
The watch looks better than new, works beautifully, and he even had a Breitling box available (no idea where the one I bought the watch in went). Really, really, really happy with Julius… these days, it is almost impossible to find anyone that takes the time and effort to do their job correctly, and it is obvious that Julius is one of these people. I can’t say enough good things about him and what he has done.
THANK YOU JULIUS!

I’m not sure if there was some recent trauma with my Breitling, since I’d left it unattended with a toddler walking about, but the hour hand became loose. I was a little fearful if this was going to be an expensive repair but, when I brought it here, the quote was pretty low.
At the same time, I noticed that I’d left a few of my watches running and their batteries had died, so I got those taken care of too, also at surprisingly reasonable prices. In fact, more than reasonable. I hope he can cover expenses, because I hope to come here for as long as I own my watch, and I’m surprised he can stay in business at such low prices.

I have had my Breitling Avenger for well over 10 years and never thought about get it tune-​up. I noticed that the crown wasn’t working so I guess it was the dreadful time to get tune-​up and have the crown fixed. I took it to JD and explained that it might need a tune-​up and the crown was not working. Within a couple of days he got back with an estimate and a couple weeks later my watch was fixed. On top of that my watch did not need a tune-​up as it was still in great condition (I don’t use it much) When I got it back I noticed that it was cleaned and looks brand new again.
I know that it can take sometime, but keep in mind that you don’t want to rush something so delicate and precise (just look at how many pieces your watch has inside you will be amazed). JD Watchworks are the best and quite reasonable. Hundred times better then sending your watch to the service center where it can take months to get fixed and cost you a lot more $$$$. Kudos to Julius and his outstanding workmanship.
Need to get your expensive watch tune-​up or fixed Julius is your guy. He is honest and does not cut corners. Kudos Julius!

I am so glad to have found J.D. Watchworks in SF. They say you shouldn’t buy a Benzo if you can’t afford the maintenance. Then I guess same applies; I shouldn’t have bought a Breitling unless I can afford $ 900 tune ups.
After too many years of drunk debauchery and slamming my watch on god knows what, I’ve dismantled a key piece to the functionality. Luckily, an intensive Unilocal/​internet search led me to JD Watchworks. Julius fixed my watched an returned in 3 weeks at about 15% of the cost of Breitling. Not only did he fix it, but he also polished out the watch to look brand new again.
He is a bit older and slow to respond to status updates. I can only imagine Julius is a one man shop and that’s how he keeps overhead low. Nevertheless, if you’re anywhere on the west coast, heck even all of US, I’d send my watches to Julius.