Rare surviving WW2 PT Boat to be restored

[kscarbel2]

The Maritime Executive / February 11, 2016

One of the handful of remaining wooden PT boats, made famous by their service in the Pacific in WWII, is being restored in an all-volunteer effort by the National WWII Museum.

PT-305, built by Higgins Industries in New Orleans, was deployed in World War II in the Mediterranean Theater; she entered commercial service as a tour boat and a workboat after the war.

“Virtually everything has to be remanufactured,” said Bruce Harris, restoration coordinator on the project. “We're using the same materials as used originally,”

He said that as many as 30 to 40 volunteers show up to work on the project on the weekends, and they hail from all walks of life – from naval architects to students to small business owners.

“We're finding that the as-built vessel deviated quite a bit from the design,” said a volunteer.

And finding spares for her three supercharged Packard aircraft engines is not as simple as it might be for a small-block V-8. “We could take one apart, put it back together in 6 to 8 weeks if we had new parts. But every part you take off of it, you have to recondition it . . . and if you can't find it, you have to make it.”

There are only a few remaining PT boats in the United States, and only one is presently functional. PT-658, based in Portland, Oregon, was restored to original plans by a group of PT boat veterans in the 1990s. She is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Including all vessel types and experimental models, nearly 800 boats bearing the PT designation were built between 1939 and 1945.

They saw service all over the world, but are perhaps best known for action in the Pacific Theater, where they disrupted Japanese supply shipments in shallow waters where larger naval vessels could not go, conducted reconnaisance and carried out night attacks.

The boats were valued for their maneuverability, speed, and low cost of construction; their wooden hulls and small size freed up space at larger naval shipyards, too, as smaller boatbuilders took on the task of sending them down the ways.

Famous PT boats included PT-41, which led a squadron of boats to carry General Douglas MacArthur, his family and his staff from Corregidor Island as Japanese forces advanced. They evaded a Japanese cruiser and safely transported the officers to Mindanao. Lieutenant John Bulkeley received the Medal of Honor for his leadership in the evacuation

PT-109, under the command of future president Lieutenant John F. Kennedy, was rammed and sunk by a Japanese warship in the Solomon Islands. Her eleven surviving crew took shelter on a nearby island and were rescued with assistance from local coastwatch members.

This book is a must-read (the movie doesn't come close). Buy it new, or used good condition - http://www.amazon.com/They-Were-Expendable-Philippines-Bluejacket/dp/1557509484

[other dog]

Neat stuff there- I read the book and have seen the movie about PT109 several times. And who could forget McHale's Navy?

[kscarbel2]

[kscarbel2]

During his first six year tour, Ernest Borgnine served in China, which means he was on the Yangtze Patrol (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yangtze_Patrol), a unit of the U.S. Navy's Asiatic Fleet (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asiatic_Squadron).

[41chevy]

When I was a kid there were 3 that were used as tour boats in Red Bank N.J. Two were stripped down and one painted Blue and one Red. The third was in Navy sea olive green and still had most of the military positions. That was in the late 50's early 60's.

[kscarbel2]

[j hancock]

The Elco PT boat on display at Battleship Cove, Fall River, MA is pretty sweet looking. Glad another one is being preserved.

[mrsmackpaul]

all very interesting its amazing the job these did and the speed they traveled the most amazing thing is the amount of fuel they used I read some where once at full speed they only had enough fuel for 1 hour and there tanks were like 6000 gallons dont quote me on these figures but it was a bucket load fuel real quick

Just the thing to use to go fishing

Paul

[carlotpilot]

just watched another vid on pt 6 58 that said there were 4` 800 gal fuel tanks also said that flat out each eng used roughly 170 gallons an hour

[39 Baby Mack]

Neat stuff there- I read the book and have seen the movie about PT109 several times. And who could forget McHale's Navy?

You beat me to it Tommy,

What about the PT-73?

Ron

Sent from my SM-G900V using Tapatalk

[Joe Ditchkus]

I went to Hollywood back in 1970 and was at the studio where they filmed Mchale's Navy. PT 73 was there it was not a full size replica they used. It was ironic as I was headed to Vietnam to serve on a Motor Gunboat.The twin 20's on my boat were WW2 Vintage which when you think about it WW2 ended only 25 years earlier and not that old.

[mrsmackpaul]

just watched another vid on pt 6 58 that said there were 4` 800 gal fuel tanks also said that flat out each eng used roughly 170 gallons an hour

sounds good to me all I could remember it was a bucket load of fuel was the video on youtube ???

Paul

[kscarbel2]

I went to Hollywood back in 1970 and was at the studio where they filmed Mchale's Navy. PT 73 was there it was not a full size replica they used. It was ironic as I was headed to Vietnam to serve on a Motor Gunboat.The twin 20's on my boat were WW2 Vintage which when you think about it WW2 ended only 25 years earlier and not that old.

In part 2 of 2, at the very beginning, Ernest Borgnine's navy time in China is mentioned.

At about 4:38 minutes, they talk about the boat.

There was a real boat, as seen in the show's intro. For the H-4 Hercules seaplane project (aka Spruce Goose), Howard Hughes requested from the Navy two PTs for use as chase boats that, produced at the end of the war, were new and available. Several PT boat designs were produced, such as the PT305 from Higgins, and the Elcos. But the PT-73 was a U.S.-produced British design 70-foot Type 2 Vosper, produced under license during the war.

The boats on the set (lake), as they say, were downsized, non-powered and made of cardboard.

[ws721]

VERY nice! Thank you for sharing this

[BOB DINGSDALE]

I heard that a guy in CAN. is doing one also with two V12 HALL-SCOTTS. Somewhere on the FRASER RIVER here in B C

[MADDOG93]

There's 4 or 5 in Kington New York on the Hudson . One fully restored and the rest in hulls complete or not but there .

[41chevy]

There's 4 or 5 in Kington New York on the Hudson . One fully restored and the rest in hulls complete or not but there .

http://www.timesunion.com/business/article/PT-boats-on-the-Hudson-4876351.php#photo-5290873

[Gmerrill0516]

Three 1500 HP, 2500 cubic inch supercharged engines....yeah, that will burn some gasoline in a hurry...Fill-er-up please! That makes an old normally aspirated 707 Mack look little....Crazy Stupid big...got the job done didn't they! Amazing history.

Cool Cool Cool!!!!

[kscarbel2]

Three 1500 HP, 2500 cubic inch supercharged engines....yeah, that will burn some gasoline in a hurry...Fill-er-up please! That makes an old normally aspirated 707 Mack look little....Crazy Stupid big...got the job done didn't they! Amazing history.

Cool Cool Cool!!!!

http://www.ptboats.org/20-01-05-ptboat-008.html

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/motoring/classiccars/8209523/Packard-V12-4M-2500-engine-in-detail.html

[41chevy]

Three 1500 HP, 2500 cubic inch supercharged engines....yeah, that will burn some gasoline in a hurry...Fill-er-up please! That makes an old normally aspirated 707 Mack look little....Crazy Stupid big...got the job done didn't they! Amazing history.

Cool Cool Cool!!!!

There was also a War Emergency Power set up the briefly boosted h.p. to almost 2800+ h.p. with Methanol-water injection injection. 5 hours total use of the power adder required a full rebuild so it was rarely used.

[kscarbel2]

There was also a War Emergency Power set up the briefly boosted h.p. to almost 2800+ h.p. with Methanol-water injection injection. 5 hours total use of the power adder required a full rebuild so it was rarely used.

I think "War Emergency Power" (WEP) was better known on the American fighter aircraft, including the P-38, P-40, P-47, P-51 and our best, the F4U.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_emergency_power

[41chevy]

I think "War Emergency Power" (WEP) was better known on the American fighter aircraft, including the P-38, P-40, P-47, P-51 and our best, the F4U.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_emergency_power

Yes it was, and mostly used in the European theater PT Boats in the Mediterranean.

[grayhair]

Some really cool engines were developed during wartime. The Pratt & Whitney 28 cylinder R-4360 radial for example. One version made 3800 HP. It had a supercharger and 2 turbochargers and powered some mammoth planes.

[41chevy]

The WWII Chrysler Multi Bank was the most innovative and used what was readily available for quick production. 30 cylinders, 5 crank shafts and cams, 5 Distributors and 5 carburetors all for 445 h.p.

[kscarbel2]

The WWII Chrysler Multi Bank was the most innovative and used what was readily available for quick production. 30 cylinders, 5 crank shafts and cams, 5 Distributors and 5 carburetors all for 445 h.p.

But of all the Sherman variants, only the M4A4 used the Chrysler A57 multi-bank. Like the Caterpillar D200A radial (a Wright R-1820 aircraft engine converted to diesel, aka RD-1820), the Chrysler powerplant saw limited use. It was complex, and thus expensive and time-consuming to produce, whereas the Ford GAA (and Continental R975) could be produced cheaply in high volumes.

One of the Sherman's biggest flaws was the Army's lean toward gasoline engines. That they were nicknamed "Ronsons" (after the lighter) tells you something. Far fewer men would have died had they been equipped with diesels like the German and Russian tanks.