Classico

Classico is the family of models that most faithfully embodies U-Boat's identity: a large case, a clean, highly legible dial, a prominent crown on the left side protected by a lever cap. It is the line in which the brand — founded in 2000 by Italo Fontana on the basis of the 1942 drawings his grandfather Ilvo made for the Italian Navy — has expressed its distinctive aesthetic for the longest time and in the most variants.

A key moment in the line's history was the launch, in 2009, of the U-1942: a limited edition of 999 pieces in 53 mm grade 5 titanium, with an ETA 2824-2 automatic movement, 300 metres of water resistance and a lever ("collapsible") crown system conceived as an explicit tribute to the original 1942 project. The following year, in March 2010, U-Boat presented the U-42: a slimmer (about 3 mm less) and lighter version of the same concept, keeping the 53 mm diameter and the same water resistance, but with a case designed for easier everyday wear.

These two models gave rise to the entire Classico family, which over the years has grown with variants in steel, tungsten, ceramic and bronze, in different diameters but always recognisable by the same case and crown layout: U-Boat's most direct and least stylised response to its own founding story.