READY TO HIT THE BIG TIME

YOU know what they say about men with big wristwatches? Yup, big hands — well, watch hands anyway — and the current trend in guys’ timepieces seems to betray a certain fascination with size. And now Italo Fontana, the Italian company that in 2000 launched the U-Boat brand, based on 60-year-old plans to make watches for Italian U-boat officers, has decided to become the standard bearer, with a 55-millimeter diameter face, one of the largest commercially made arm-based timepieces on the market.

Think of it as having something the size and shape of a skateboard wheel strapped to your wrist.

Weighing in at a skull-cracking 6 ounces and sporting a distinctive left-hand crown and hook mechanism, the new U is part of the brand’s 9-month-old attempt to reposition itself in the luxury market (and rather modestly, at $2,000). In the U.S., the U is available at just 25 jewelry stores, including the Feldmar Watch Co. in Los Angeles, Hours Minutes Seconds at the Beverly Hilton and Classic Designs in the Glendale Galleria. Start flexing.

— Adam Tschorn