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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: Looking for information on a unique radar mast design
http://www.ptboatforum.com/cgi-bin/MB2/netboardr.cgi?cid=101&fid=102&tid=812

I was doing a lot of research on mid-war Elco PT's and came across this photo:

http://www.bluejacket.com/usn/images/sp/oth/w2_new_guinea_mtb.jpg

Note the unique radar mast.

I can't find anything about this particular boat. The only information I can find is on boats with either the non-radar, mid-war cylindrical, or late war rotating radar masts. The one pictured appears to be unique as I said. I for one think it looks the coolest of the bunch and as a model would probably be the most distinctive and durable.

However this is the only image I can find of it. Does anyone know anything more about it? thanks.

money can't buy happiness but it can buy an RC boat which is kind of the same thing.

Posted By: spacephrawgg | Posted on: May 28, 2008 - 9:51am
Total Posts: | Joined: Unregistered

This photograph is sometimes captioned as PT 149 but I have not been able to confirm this. She carries the SCR 517 radar set. It was an aircraft set, S-band, used in the P-61 Black Widow. A number of boats from RONs 7, 8, 9 and 10 used them in late 1942 and early 1943. The installation was an important first step but the device was not well suited for PT use. In 1943, Raytheon developed the SO-A set specifically for use on the boats which included the PPI scope.

Hope this helps,

ALEX

Posted By: Alex Johnson | Posted on: May 28, 2008 - 10:02am
Total Posts: 70 | Joined: Mar 2, 2007 - 12:07pm

It does very well. Its a pitty it wasnt a success because it looks great. Do you know where I could find other pix of the same design?

money can't buy happiness but it can buy an RC boat which is kind of the same thing.

Posted By: spacephrawgg | Posted on: May 28, 2008 - 10:24am
Total Posts: | Joined: Unregistered

spacephrawgg,

I've always thought those SCR-517A PT radars were interesting, too, and I've mentioned them a few time on the messsage board -- not that I know that much about them. They were nicknamed "beehive" radars because they looked like one, due to the appearance of the ribbed frames underneath the cloth covers.

Besides some earlier, jury-rigged and unsuccessful radar setups with foredeck-mounted antennas and charthouse-mounted wires, they seemed to be the first PT radars that were purpose-built (albeit adapted from P-61 aircraft sets, as Alex mentioned) and worked (sometimes).

Check out the book "United States PT - Boats of World War II In Action" by Frank D. Johnson. You'll find several other photos of 80' Elco PTs with the beehive radars in it.

Posted By: Drew Cook | Posted on: May 28, 2008 - 11:42am
Total Posts: 1306 | Joined: Oct 19, 2006 - 10:44am