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 Author  Topic: Did many boats have a 40 mm on the foredeck?
PeterTareBuilder

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Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of PeterTareBuilder  Posted on: Jul 12, 2012 - 12:23pm
Hi there.

Curiosity has gripped me again.

Did many boats have a 40 mm on the foredeck?

I"m guessing that a 40 mm fore and a 40 mm aft was pretty rare?

Cheers from Peter

"Give me a faster PT boat for I'd like to get out of harm's way!"

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Will Day

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Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of Will Day   Send Email To Will Day Posted on: Jul 12, 2012 - 12:56pm
@ Peter: I think pretty rare. The 174 boat had a 40mm forward (not sure about the aft mount - almost looks like a Thunderbolt setup in the one fuzzy photo I have. Maybe Al knows).

PT-59 had 40s forward and aft in her gunboat configuration. The postwar metal boats had them also.

Probably some others, but weight had to be a limiting factor.

Will

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alross2

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Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of alross2   Send Email To alross2 Posted on: Jul 12, 2012 - 1:37pm
No. For certain - 59, 60, 61, 174, 221, 223, 285 (photos). PT560-563 were authorized to carry a 40mm fore and aft, but I've never seen a photo of this configuration, so it may not have been carried out. The Argentine Higgins and some of the Jugoslavian Higgins derivatives (MT108 series) did mount a 40mm forward.

Al


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Wayne Traxel

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Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of Wayne Traxel   Send Email To Wayne Traxel Posted on: Jul 12, 2012 - 3:50pm
Written and crew accounts Include Ron 23 Higgins PT's 283 and 284 skippered by I. Richard Haspel having 40's installed on bow and stern and the 4 Mk-13 torpeodes removed by the repair ship Argonne. In March 1944 PT-283 was destroyed and PT-282 was converted to a gunboat as 283's replacement.

Wayne

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Nuge210

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Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of Nuge210   Send Email To Nuge210 Posted on: Jul 12, 2012 - 6:11pm
Guys,

It's hard to believe that a 40mm on the bow wouldn't affect a high speed run to a patrol area,

have you ever read or heard anything about one of these boats in heavy weather ?

Steve

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Allan

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Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of Allan   Send Email To Allan Posted on: Jul 12, 2012 - 6:34pm
I have a hand-written account by then Lt Comdr De Mond of an instance when the 40-mm bow piece tore loose on the 114 boat (Div 17, just absorbed by Ron 8) in extremely heavy seas and the motor mac was severly injured with what became life-long back problems as he was tossed down the forward ladder twice in trying to secure it to the kingpost (as I recall). The 40-mm had been mounted while at the Hilo in April or May of '43.

Allan


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Frank J Andruss Sr

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Post a Reply To This Topic    Reply With Quotes     Edit Message     View Profile of Frank J Andruss Sr   Send Email To Frank J Andruss Sr Posted on: Jul 12, 2012 - 7:00pm
In my book "PT Boats behind the Scenes" is a great shot of PT-60 showing the 40mm on the bow. Maybe Dick will post it for me, as I have it on Tiff File, but it is so large I could never send it............


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