Pre-Owned Picks Wrists Come In All Sizes, And Watches Do Too

The width of the case also doesn’t tell you the whole story. The lug-to-lug measurements are often a better indicator of how much real estate a watch will take up on the wrist. For most, the larger the wrist, the larger the watch they are comfortable wearing. But don’t let anyone tell you what size is best for you. It’s a personal style choice with no hard rules, except one: Wear what you like. With that in mind, here are six pre-owned picks that span the world of watch sizes.

This 49.2mm beast may have been tagged with the Aqua Terra name, but outside some twisted lugs and 150m of water resistance, nothing about this watch screams Aqua Terra. Instead, it shares a case and dimensions with the Railmaster XXL, released a few years before this watch. The name certainly does live up to its XXL, with a lug-to-lug measurement of around 56mm, it takes a confident individual to pull this watch off. If you’re up for that challenge, you will be rewarded with one of the largest white enamel dials to have been placed on a wristwatch. The milky white enamel dial is paired with Breguet numerals, a combination that has been used for over 200 years since the days of A.L. Breguet himself. The hands are heat-blued with Omega’s own play on the Breguet hand, replacing the circle with a vintage Omega logo. This is all housed in a white gold case, whose size adds a bit of heft to the watch. Overall, it’s a beautiful execution of classic elements, put into a case size that will grab people’s attention. The cherry on the big watch sundae is that only 88 of these were made. Arnold S., if you’re reading this, we have the perfect dress watch for you.

Coming down a few millimeters in size brings us to the home of Panerai. At 44mm across, the PAM 312 is a size Panerai is very comfortable with. Everything about a Panerai Luminor is large – take a moment to look at that crown guard. The dial is a large black void that’s constructed in a sandwich style that allows the lume from below to shine through the large cutouts for the hour markers and numerals. Simple baton hands with matching lume are easily read on a dial this simple. It’s that simplicity that allows the watch to work so well aesthetically. A large case, uncluttered dial, large crown guards, and large numerals all work together to create a well-proportioned watch that has seen little change since the 1950s.

The most common size for a modern watch is around 40-41mm. It’s where the Rolex Submariner and GMT come in, along with the Patek Philippe Nautilus, Omega Railmaster, Cartier Santos, and thousands more. These watches will fit easily on most wrists and 40-41mm the perfect size for people with smaller wrists whose tastes don’t gravitate toward the dainty. The Breitling Top Time Deus comes in at 41mm with a sporty chronograph design and a little bit of Latin on the tachymeter. In Benzin Veritas, or in gasoline truth, written on the watch is in connection with the Deus Ex Machina clothing brand out of Australia. The central chronograph hand is a lightning bolt, which adds a little more flair to the watch. These little touches almost become necessary to stand out amongst the plethora of watches in this size range, and in this case, Breitling made one hell of a fun watch.

In vintage watches, 38mm can be considered on the larger side. Today, they are slightly smaller than average. Just about any watch in this range will look good on any wrist larger than a toddler’s. The El Primero debuted at this size, and there’s no good reason why it shouldn’t stay that way. The story of the El Primero comes in two parts, in 1969, it became the first automatic chronograph, beating the competition from Seiko and another team led by Heuer by mere months. This is enough to cement the movement into the history books, but it’s the second part of the story that’s the greatest tale in modern watchmaking history. It’s the story of Charles Vermot and how he saved Zenith against the wishes of his employers. I highly recommend this video or this article on the subject. This Revival Manufacture edition has a dial that’s based on a prototype that was found when cleaning up the Zenith archives. Instead of the usual blue and gray sub-dials, this El Primero has three different shades of blue. It is a nice touch, and a design that may have been lost to history if it were not for Mr. Vermot.

The king of 36mm watches is also the king of watchmaking, Rolex. The Oyster Perpetual in 36mm has been a mainstay in Rolex’s lineup going back generations. The same case size has been used on Datejusts, Day-Dates, and Explorers. It’s a common size to see on both male and female wrists and was considered a standard size in vintage wristwatches for men. While always being a popular model, the OP36 really took off with the rest of the Oyster Perpetual line in 2020, when Rolex introduced a rainbow of colors to choose from. The candy pink in this watch is not available in all sizes, and the largest size you can get it in is 36mm. The demand for this pink watch has led to long waitlists and a still healthy aftermarket.

Going down to 33mm, we have the Cartier Ballon Bleu. At this size, there’s not much room on a dial to allow for extra flourishes or sub-dials. Cartier is still able to fit in their signature Roman numerals, inset Ballon Bleu Crown, and not skimp on the movement. Many watches in this size category will be fitted with a quartz movement as mechanical ones become harder to manufacture at this size. Cartier managed to add an automatic movement while keeping the watch only 10mm thick. If you feel like you can pull off this size watch on a 7.5-inch wrist, I say go for it, but that’s not where most of us will see this watch. Instead, this is a watch meant to adorn a smaller wrist and happily be paired with a tennis bracelet on the other arm.

Now through December 25, enjoy $400 off pre-owned watches from five top brands like Tudor, Panerai, Breitling, and more. Discount applied automatically at checkout.

For more watches in all sizes, visit Crown and Caliber.