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ť Forum Category: PT Boats of WWII
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ť Forum Name: PT Boats - General
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ť Topic: Need info on armor removed from PT-105 and Ron 5 boats
http://www.ptboatforum.com/cgi-bin/MB2/netboardr.cgi?cid=101&fid=102&tid=3225

Hi all,
I'm looking for some help with my PT-105 build. Mr. Keresey wrote in his book that in summer of 1942 the boats then in Panama were experiencing some speed problems. Boat speeds dropped to 27 knots. The Navy and Elco worked on solutions but during that period Mr. Keresey said that they removed the armor from the helm to reduce weight. It did no good. Mr. Keresey says that the Ron 5 boats left the armor off and notes that it could have saved his Exec, Phil Hornbrook, who was killed during a rear strafing run 6 months later. The letters that I exchanged with Mr. Keresey also noted that the armor was removed on his boat but not on the 109 which makes sense because the 109 was one of the boats that was sent ahead of the rest of the Squadron.

Out of respect for these two skippers who helped me, I'm building my boat during the time period in 1943 when command was transferred from Mr. Keresey to Mr. Iles.

I'm looking for some evidence of how the armor was removed from these boats, photos or otherwise. For example was the cockpit port side left in place and only the rear and starboard side return armor removed? I'm also wondering about the plating on the front of the cockpit and around the wheel. I've seen some photos of other boats from different squadrons where the armor was removed from the cockpit and that provides some clues.

Thanks for your time!
Dave

David Waples

Posted By: David Waples | Posted on: Jun 23, 2013 - 6:38am
Total Posts: 1679 | Joined: Jan 2, 2007 - 9:55pm

Dave,

My guess is that the most visible removal of any armor around the cockpit would have been that rear bulkhead and its starboard "wing" piece, examples of which, of course, can be seen in many a vintage photo of 80-footers. Maybe the plate above the charthouse just under and across the base of the windshield, also?

If cockpit armor included the inboard port bulkhead by the wheel (incorrectly molded, as we know, as having exposed framing on the Italeri PT 109 kit), perhaps that was removed also, exposing the open framing?

Both the rear cockpit bulkhead & "wing" pieces, and the plate under the windshield are visible on the 105 in the photo of the boat refueling on the Panama-Galapagos run, and you really can't tell from another, mid/late-war bow-on shot, so..?.

Posted By: Drew Cook | Posted on: Jun 23, 2013 - 2:48pm
Total Posts: 1306 | Joined: Oct 19, 2006 - 10:44am

All of the photos of the 103 class boats I've seen with armor removed also have the port helm side removed as well. None of these that I have seen are from RON 5. They are all later model boats. Unless I can find something to change my mind I'm not going to include the port side armor in which case Italeri did me a huge favor with how they modeled the cockpit.
Dave

David Waples

Posted By: David Waples | Posted on: Jun 23, 2013 - 3:14pm
Total Posts: 1679 | Joined: Jan 2, 2007 - 9:55pm