[The Boots]

EDIT: This post is totally wrong and there are some great corrections below! I'm leaving this here for context and if anyone else makes the same error!

My first watch "big" watch purchase(CW C60 sapphire) was a teeny bit disappointing. The reason was that when I put it on, it felt... Small?
I assumed that I just wasn't used to the bezel on the diver, but I had a hard time believing that the case was really 40mm.
Today, I accidentally discovered that I was only partly right. I randomly measured the watch, and I came up with only 38mm across the dial. The reason? There's a 2mm crown guard.
I'm not saying it doesn't make sense (it totally does!) but to me, including the crown guard kind of distorts the size of the watch. Between the bezel and the extra 2mm, it really does feel small on my wrist.
I guess I'll know better next time!

 

[midshipman01]

I would agree that measuring across the edges of the case is a much better way, and I think much of the time that is how it’s done.

But my immediate thought was that I’ve found a way better indicator of how a watch will appear is the ratio of dial size to the case. A 39mm with a whopping huge dial that reaches the outer borders seems to always wear bigger visually than even a 43mm case with a smaller dial. For case size to do it alone you need a pretty substantial difference, for me.

 

[maliboo74]

The bezel diameter is almost always left out of the measurements. To me it matters. I prefer larger watches. A 45mm watch just isn’t if it has a 40mm bezel. I discovered this when I picked up a Seiko Marinemaster.

 

[MX793]

Case is measured 10 to 4 so as not to pick up the crown guard. On C60s, the bezel diameter is the same as the case. I own a couple of 38mm models, their bezels are exactly 38mm, as are the cases measured 10 to 4.

Measurements taken with dial calipers, not a ruler.

 

[The Boots]

Case is measured 10 to 4 so as not to pick up the crown guard. On C60s, the bezel diameter is the same as the case. I own a couple of 38mm models, their bezels are exactly 38mm, as are the cases measured 10 to 4.

Measurements taken with dial calipers, not a ruler.

See, this is why I post stuff here! To learn!

Always good to learn. In most of the marketing stuff I've seen, the diameter is shown from 9-3, but you're totally right.
I just don't keep a set of calipers at my desk during the day. I've got one everywhere else, though!
Thanks!

 

[dbostedo]

In most of the marketing stuff I've seen, the diameter is shown from 9-3,

Really? Where? I've very rarely seen the crown guard included in the watch dimensions. When most listings/brands state the size of the watch, it's the case diameter without crown guards.

(With the perhaps notable exception of some used watch sites where old watches sometimes include the crown guard to make them seem bigger, since older watches tend to be on the small side.)

 

[Glencoe]

I'm confused. So they say 40mm and it is actually 40mm, as per the caliper measurement above. Was just an incorrect measurement at 38mm in the first post? I've never seen anyone include the crown or crown guard in a diameter measurement, other than secondhand eBay sellers who don't know about watches.

 

[MX793]

I'm confused. So they say 40mm and it is actually 40mm, as per the caliper measurement above. Was just an incorrect measurement at 38mm in the first post? I've never seen anyone include the crown or crown guard in a diameter measurement, other than secondhand eBay sellers who don't know about watches.

Every so often I see a manufacturer that will give case width including the crown, but this is made very clear and it is provided in addition to the traditional case diameter measured without the crown or crown guards included.

The only time "crown guards" are included in case diameter is when the guards aren't sharply defined, and rather you simply have an asymmetrical case such as with the Omega Speedmaster.

 

[dbostedo]

So they say 40mm and it is actually 40mm, as per the caliper measurement above. Was just an incorrect measurement at 38mm in the first post?

Seconded. @The Boots? What's the deal?

 

[The Boots]

Seconded. @The Boots? What's the deal?

The official specification of 40mm measurement is correct and does NOT include the crown guard, which would have added an additional 1-2mm beyond that. The 38mm I had in the post was wrong (I think the chamfer threw me off when I did the quick ruler check)! And to be clear, most measurements DO note that the diameter doesn't include the crown itself, I was simply referring to the bumps that extend from the case that protect the crown. They are technically part of the case, so I could see why they MIGHT be included in the diameter, even though that would make the value really deceptive.

As for the measurement being shown across, rather than diagonally, I was just saying that part of my misconception was based off of infographics like this, that show the diameter directly across the horizontal (9-3) width of the watch:

Again, I was totally wrong. Just trying to explain where I think my misconceptions came from!
Thanks to all of you for the corrections and the good info!
EDIT: I put an edit on the first post to hopefully make it clear that it's wrong!

 

[dirtvictim]

If a watch has a large crown I will include that size also however I measure slightly off center to get a better measurement. For divers I just use the bezel size however if the case is slightly bigger than the bezel I typically include that measurement as well. If the case is smaller than the bezel I do not include that measurement.

 

[Nokie]

Beauty, as well as comfort and case size, are all in the eye of the beholder, IMHO.....

 

[bth1234]

You spurred me to check. I don't have a C60, but the C65 is reported as 41mm, and that's the bezel. A speedy is officially 42mm, but the bezel is only 40 or 40.5 - and that is definitely the crown guards.