poor experience with John Brozek of Quality Tyme

[richardprenderville]

i had a very poor experience with John Brozek of Quality Tyme that i feel i should share to fellow Rolex owners. i asked john to fix my GMT master ll (16760 ) in 2008- general servicing, and the dial was not illuminating. John replaced the face with a GMT l face (not sure if it was oem). now, my watch is with a rolex service center and they are confiscating the face, because it is not oem, at least to the gmt ll. i called john about this two weeks ago, only reaching him once in person as he does not return my calls (he is very busy). he only said he wasn't sure about the exact case because it was a while back, but he said rolex is always trying to rip you off. i said i was not trying to be a jerk about it, didn't ask for any money, just asked him to go back through his records, look at the service and give me a ring back. it's been over a week and i have not heard from him (and i have left him gentle reminders). the bottom line is, even if john had told me at the time of the repair "this is what we are doing, this is the consequences, etc." i would have been fine with it. instead, now i feel like i have been duped, i am not sure if he is a certified rolex repair shop,and i would not recommend him to any other rolex owner i know. thank you

[p_mcgee]

I didn't have a bad exPerience with this outfit but do remember that they don't return emails or phone calls. John knows a lot about Rolexes.

I also sent my GMT in for a dial swap but they couldn't locate the correct dial so I just paid to have the watch shipped back unchanged.

[Transcon]

Sorry to hear you are going through this, hope it all gets resolved

It does bother me though that RUSA thinks they can "confiscate" someones watch (dial in this example) if it turns out not to be genuine. I understand that they are using this as a way of cracking down on non-oem parts but to just take it is outright thievery. The watch (and all its parts) are YOUR property and should be treated as such. They should let you know the problem with the dial, give you the option of replacement, or the option to just have your watch sent back to you to deal with on your own. As much as I enjoy my watches this is one part of the Rolex "experience" I could do without, as such I will only be sending any of mine to one of the few CW21 watchmakers listed throughout TRF. Sorry RUSA but in my mind this is just bad business practice

[lebowski321]

[QUOTE=Transcon;3080244]Sorry to hear you are going through this, hope it all gets resolved

It does bother me though that RUSA thinks they can "confiscate" someones watch (dial in this example) if it turns out not to be genuine. I understand that they are using this as a way of cracking down on non-oem parts but to just take it is outright thievery. The watch (and all its parts) are YOUR property and should be treated as such. They should let you know the problem with the dial, give you the option of replacement, or the option to just have your watch sent back to you to deal with on your own. As much as I enjoy my watches this is one part of the Rolex "experience" I could do without, as such I will only be sending any of mine to one of the few CW21 watchmakers listed throughout TRF. Sorry RUSA but in my mind this is just bad business practice[/QUOTE

Exactly. I'd be furious if they confiscated something of MINE.
On another note, there is no way in hell I would agree to having a GMT I dial put on my GMT II watch.

[Playdrv4me]

Without airing too much laundry here, I will say that John knows a *lot* about Rolexes. However a lot of it is also information that you can obtain yourself with a little due diligence, and some of it frankly just seems like his "best guess". From previous dealings with him however, he did strike me as someone who might overlook small details due to the sheer amount of workload he has (and he has a TON of business), as was apparently the case with your GMT.

My recommendation if you are going to deal with him is to do it in person if at all possible and get ALL his requirements in writing. He did not mention until AFTER he had our vintage 1680/8 in for an overhaul that he wanted photo ID in order for me to get it back from him "in case the watch wasn't mine". While I understand there are good reasons to do this, it rubbed me the wrong way after I had delivered this watch to him in person, and he never mentioned I needed to surrender my ID to get my own watch back.

As with all dealings with anything of this caliber, go in with both eyes wide open, and don't simply rely on word of mouth.

[IQ Publishing]

First of all, I did speak with Richard regarding his watch and yes I told him I needed to pull his file for the details since it was 4 years ago! I also told him we would be out of town to several watch shows in February (Miami IWJG, Daytona WWT & NAWCC and Orlando IWJG), and that the best way to reach me is via my direct line (i.e. cell phone). However, he called my showroom, and like I said we were out of town off and on for most of the month.

Now, as for the dial, we did not install a GMT I dial on his GMT II. We installed a correct and 100% genuine Rolex OEM dial on his watch. And we do not use "aftermarket", fake or non-OEM parts. We order all parts directly from Rolex, or in the event that it is a vintage Rolex we obtain genuine vintage dials or parts as needed.

Furthermore, this was 4 years ago and he even told me that he has the watch serviced very regularly and it had been serviced by someone else AFTER we serviced it and replaced the dial.

And no, I did not tell his that Rolex is trying to rip him off! Rolex will not "confiscate" your dial just for the hell of it. He could have had them return the watch to him and he could keep whatever dial was on it.

I do however, recall the transaction with Richard. After he received his watch, he sent us several emails (claiming) that we did not include a copy of his invoice when we returned his watch, and he even threatened to file a chargeback with his credit card company because he didn't get the invoice. Of course we did give him the invoice, and I even emailed him a PDF copy of the invoice on more than one occassion after the fact. He was obviously trying to find a way to not pay for the service, which is what I suspect from him here and now.

Ken, I'm sorry we were unable to find a proper dial & hands for your GMTII, but this just goes to show that we will only install the correct and proper parts. Otherwise, we could have sold him something else, but we didn't. We sent his watch back because that was the right thing to do.

As for Ian, we needed a copy of his drivers' license because we SOLD the 1680/8 for him on consignment. He wasn't picking the watch back up. He was getting a CHECK!! State law REQUIRES that we obtain a copy of the State-issued identification for EVERY watch we buy OR consign. Here is the email he sent to us...

"Hi John,

Thanks for assisting on the sale of the Gold sub. Below you will find the address to send the check for our part of the payment:

Please make the check payable to XXXXXXX XXXXXX, but send to my address here:

Ian Nelson
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Chesterfield, MO 63017

Thanks again,

Ian."

Again, the truth is in the details... and some people like to leave out important details like these...

And lastly, I never claimed to know EVERYTHING about Rolex. I have, however, done a considerable amount of research on Rolex and I put that research into my books and website. Hundreds of people call/email me on a regular basis asking for my expertise on certain things and as a result it is sometimes difficult to reach me. If you only knew how much my phone rings off the hook you would be amazed that I am able to get anything done at all! LOL!

John E. Brozek
QualityTyme Rare & Fine Timepieces

[DARK_KNIGHT]

THANKS for giving your side of the story. It's nice to have both sides. So much can get lost in perception.

[Rolexis]

Originally Posted by richardprenderville

i had a very poor experience with John Brozek of Quality Tyme that i feel i should share to fellow Rolex owners. i asked john to fix my GMT master ll (16760 ) in 2008- general servicing, and the dial was not illuminating. John replaced the face with a GMT l face (not sure if it was oem). now, my watch is with a rolex service center and they are confiscating the face, because it is not oem, at least to the gmt ll. i called john about this two weeks ago, only reaching him once in person as he does not return my calls (he is very busy). he only said he wasn't sure about the exact case because it was a while back, but he said rolex is always trying to rip you off. i said i was not trying to be a jerk about it, didn't ask for any money, just asked him to go back through his records, look at the service and give me a ring back. it's been over a week and i have not heard from him (and i have left him gentle reminders). the bottom line is, even if john had told me at the time of the repair "this is what we are doing, this is the consequences, etc." i would have been fine with it. instead, now i feel like i have been duped, i am not sure if he is a certified rolex repair shop,and i would not recommend him to any other rolex owner i know. thank you

Its your fault I feel. You should not have waited sooooooooooooooooo long to ask him about it. When you originally got the watch back without a GMT II dial you should have called him right away. How long did you have it back from this person in question to the day you sent it to RSC? I would not recommend anyone that owns a sports rolex to replace a dial bc lume doesnt glow anymore. These watches are of more value original. If you need to see in the dark get a maglite

[wwwatches]

I personally know John and have done business with him.
He is a VERY KNOWLEDGEABLE ROLEX ENTHUSIAST, real gentleman and always a pleasure to deal with.

I hope it helps.

[rajurama]

Originally Posted by IQ Publishing

First of all, I did speak with Richard regarding his watch and yes I told him I needed to pull his file for the details since it was 4 years ago! I also told him we would be out of town to several watch shows in February (Miami IWJG, Daytona WWT & NAWCC and Orlando IWJG), and that the best way to reach me is via my direct line (i.e. cell phone). However, he called my showroom, and like I said we were out of town off and on for most of the month.

Now, as for the dial, we did not install a GMT I dial on his GMT II. We installed a correct and 100% genuine Rolex OEM dial on his watch. And we do not use "aftermarket", fake or non-OEM parts. We order all parts directly from Rolex, or in the event that it is a vintage Rolex we obtain genuine vintage dials or parts as needed.

Furthermore, this was 4 years ago and he even told me that he has the watch serviced very regularly and it had been serviced by someone else AFTER we serviced it and replaced the dial.

And no, I did not tell his that Rolex is trying to rip him off! Rolex will not "confiscate" your dial just for the hell of it. He could have had them return the watch to him and he could keep whatever dial was on it.

I do however, recall the transaction with Richard. After he received his watch, he sent us several emails (claiming) that we did not include a copy of his invoice when we returned his watch, and he even threatened to file a chargeback with his credit card company because he didn't get the invoice. Of course we did give him the invoice, and I even emailed him a PDF copy of the invoice on more than one occassion after the fact. He was obviously trying to find a way to not pay for the service, which is what I suspect from him here and now.

Ken, I'm sorry we were unable to find a proper dial & hands for your GMTII, but this just goes to show that we will only install the correct and proper parts. Otherwise, we could have sold him something else, but we didn't. We sent his watch back because that was the right thing to do.

As for Ian, we needed a copy of his drivers' license because we SOLD the 1680/8 for him on consignment. He wasn't picking the watch back up. He was getting a CHECK!! State law REQUIRES that we obtain a copy of the State-issued identification for EVERY watch we buy OR consign. Here is the email he sent to us...

"Hi John,

Thanks for assisting on the sale of the Gold sub. Below you will find the address to send the check for our part of the payment:

Please make the check payable to XXXXXXX XXXXXX, but send to my address here:

Ian Nelson
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Chesterfield, MO 63017

Thanks again,

Ian."

Again, the truth is in the details... and some people like to leave out important details like these...

And lastly, I never claimed to know EVERYTHING about Rolex. I have, however, done a considerable amount of research on Rolex and I put that research into my books and website. Hundreds of people call/email me on a regular basis asking for my expertise on certain things and as a result it is sometimes difficult to reach me. If you only knew how much my phone rings off the hook you would be amazed that I am able to get anything done at all! LOL!

John E. Brozek
QualityTyme Rare & Fine Timepieces

Fair enough. Thanks for the clarification.