Peter T. from Atlanta, Georgia, USA asks:

I am a man with rather large, well, hands. I find it difficult to purchase many watches I would love to add to my collection because my hands seem to dwarf a timepiece with a face smaller than 42-44mm. Is there a proper ratio of face size to hand size, or can the petite face co-exist with the full-handed man.

This really goes into the larger question of “what is the proper size watch for my wrist?” The simple answer is that while there is new perfect size for everyone, especially as taste is subjective, there are certain rules worth following. Let’s discuss your question first. There is no specific hand-size-to-watch-case diameter ratio, but you should make sure of a few things. First, ensure that the lugs of a watch (those things that hold the strap) don’t extend over your wrist when wearing the watch. This can vary a lot because the same watch case size can have a lot of different lug sizes. The opposite is also true. If the lugs are no where near the ends of your wrist then the watch will appear dainty and feminine or child-like, and you don’t want that as well. Today’s popular style has most men wearing watches that fill up as much of their wrist as possible without actually being larger than their wrist.

If watches smaller than 42 or 44mm are too small for you, then avoid them. You have plenty of options out there in the 45 to 48mm wide range. There are options larger than that, but they are rare when it comes to “good” watches. We did a poll a while back and found that 90-95% of the men who responded their ideal watch size was somewhere between 40-44mm wide. So most people out there should be looking for a watch in this range. There are, of course, people who like to wear vintage watches which tend to be smaller. If you like that style, that’s fine too. We recommend a taller watch (thicker case) that will help smaller diameter watches from looking feminine or to small. Note that watch size is a huge area of “discourse” among watch lovers. Watch lovers love to assert what size we feel is best, and consider those who have a different opinion as somehow “wrong.” Now, we aren’t specifically speaking of the aBlogtoWatch team, but are using ourselves as an example to explain a common phenomenon. The point is to not let other people tell you what size to wear and use the above rules to find something that you feel fits well. If it looks too small, then I guess it is.

For more, take a look at how we answered a similar question, “How Big Should My Watch Be?” and feel free to weigh-in with your own opinion »

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