I was surprised to see electric drills and screwdrivers. I'm reminded of when my Dad and I built a wooden kit boat, a 16 foot run- about. Every screw (and there were hundreds) was hand driven. No wonder I have carpal tunnel syndrome!!!
I had the opportunity as a younger man in the early 80’s to work at the Elco Marina in Bayonne. We used the same boat lifting crane to launch pleasure boats then too. I’m certainly glad I had the pleasure to do so. Thanx for sharing these historical videos.
Wow, the design and assembly of these fast boats is amazing. The great craftsmanship of the builders is so visible through the different phases of construction that it shows another reason why we call them THE GREATEST GENERATION. Makes me more proud that I'm an American.
Thank you...I am very fond of PT's and I thouroughly enjoyed the series... what a beauty these boats were. They must have smelled great below deck, when they were brand-spankin' new. I have spoken to a few guy who served on PT's and they said the sound of the engines at full throttle was one of the most beautiful sounds they ever heard. Peace.
I was very fortunate to have been able to get a ride in a modified PT boat when I was 10 years old, there was 3 of them, they were docked in a little town called ocean City NJ, what a ride I will never forget it.
Thanks for the video. I never realized how much work went into building a PT boat. As a teen I had thoughts of building one but cost and time got in the way, and there is no way I could have replicated the lamination processes used in construction. Learned much from the three videos.
Working in those days must have been fun, it sure looked like all those workers were having a great time building these PT's. I wish that camaraderie still existed today. Where I live in Rhode Island they trained the crew for the PT's near Newport. My Mom told me you could hear those boats from miles away roaring across Narragansett Bay... America has so much pride back then, I hope I get to see it again before my time is up!
Between 1969-1971, I kept my 50' trawler in the New ELCO Marina. At first, I didn't recognize the significance of the few empty warehouses that hugged the quayside, but it was apparent that they had been used to construct ships. There was no security, and I wandered around the complex. All that remained from this video was that final assembly building, four covered slips, the crane and the outer ring of protective pilings in Newark Bay. At some point, the New ELCO Marina had been created, with floats providing for small craft slips and a barge equipped with a commercial tavern and restaurant. At one time, I used that crane to haul and inspect my vessel's hull. I moved from the area and sold my trawler to the marina owner, who later crashed the trawler into that Central of New Jersey railroad bridge (was just south of the marina). I have a picture of my ex-trawler, stripped and sunk in the mud of the most northerly slip. The site of the ELCO (Electric Launch Company) plant is at 40°39'23.30" N, 74°08'13.07" W. The entire site has been re-purposed into a small new marina and a condo housing complex. The large crane, now non-functional, was relocated about 3 miles north, in Rutkowski Park at 40°41'22.43" N, 74°06'46.47" W. I wonder if there is at least a commemorative plaque at the old defense plant site?
Thanks, great film. I think we could use a few of these off Somalia. Cutters and cruisers are great, but the power of a fast, light gunboat can be awesome.
Yes, and do you know what the Navy did with the PT boats in the Pacific at the end of the war? They were brought to Ulithi Atoll and Manila and burned in deep water. Great payback from a "grateful" Navy.
We were sailing in Lake Michigan back in the 70's, on our way from Charlevoix to Mackinac Island. We could hear a power boat coming from behind us for 30 to 40 minutes before we saw it. Turned out to be a guy from Chicago that had converted a Higgins PT boat to a pleasure yacht. He circled around us a couple times, and then "poured on the coal", and away it went. It was an amazing experience for a sailor who wasn't into power boats, but I'd have owned that one!
My Dad rode these in the South Pacific during WWII and seen a lot of action. I rode the PCF Boats in Vietnam. (Patrol Craft Fast) Swift Boats for short. Seen a lot of action there too.
I've only been on one floating matchstick, very old and still agile in the 70's . Loved the feel of the boat nothing but perfection, both Higgens and ELCO built similar boats. From what the old salts told me ELCO boats were stronger but not faster. I spent three tours in riverine and all of those TAD. Mostly on Swifties, Nasties and PRB's. The ELCO boat was superior! It's amazing how capable and versatile they were. Like the Mosquito was, they proved that metal isn't the only answer. Nothing made in the 60's could math them!!
Great vid! Thanks for posting it. It goes to show what Americans are capable of doing TOGETHER when we stop yelling at each other. I hope folks can remember that such working together is what has always made this country great. And I hope it doesn't take another Pearl Harbor for us to get that.
My old man was a radio operator aboard PT'S in the south pacific during WW2, Training was somewhere in Rhode island, but he said they went to Bayonne to see the boats they were going to man being built--- Cool video, thanks-- just remembered, one of the boats he was assigned to name was the "Bayonne Bitch"
See ruclips.net/video/BA4pC0WScJw/видео.html Also, Higgins made some similar boats (I think in Pascagoula). See ruclips.net/video/vTkvl-JzkZc/видео.html
Awesome doco, thanks for sharing, it would be awesome too see a PT built with modern technology and equipment and upgrades, modern turbo diesel engines with jet propulsion and an old one restored to almost new condition for a comparison and to see how far technology has really come.
My Dad served on PT Boats. He was in Ron 19 stationed at Tulagi in the Soloman Islands. He was also awarded Purple hearts. The only time I ever saw him choked up was when Walter Cronkite broke in and said JFK had been shot. It was a sad time at our house for a while. I really wish he could have seen these video's. Thank You.
The shot from the bridge is incredible. As the PT speeds into the little bay, you see how big and powerful the PT is. In the great blue ocean they look small. Blowing up the east river at full throttle you see a bad ass boat the PT was...
P.T. 73 from "McHale's Navy" was originally built by the British & used by the USAAF as Air Sea Rescue boats during WWII. I believe there were 3 of them used in the series. One was destroyed later, after the series ended, when it broke loose from its dock moorings & drifted out to sea & eventually was smashed to pieces on shore rocks. Another, stripped down boat did a cameo appearance in the T.V. series "Emergency". It was on a flatbed trailer, which collapses on top of someone , trapping them underneath. You can still see the faded "PT73" on the bow. The fate of the 3rd. boat is unknown 🚣
Had a chance this summer to visit one of the very last PT boats left in war set up in Portland OR. Sadly it was out of the water for maintenance so didn't get to see it run. Very amazing to see the Packard engines new out of the box! There were several in pieces in Portland and the ones on the boat I didn't get to see.
Then you haven't heard of PT-305, down in New Orleans. She too, was painstakingly rebuilt and now runs on Lake Ponchitrane, the same test waters the Higgins boats used for test runs fresh from the factory. It costs around $350 for a ride. The 305 is an actual combat veteran with two nazi kills earned (2 German F-lighters, a kind of heavily armed barge) and the name "USS SUDDEN JERK" painted on the bow. The boat is set up to look exactly like it did when it served in the Mediterranean Theater.
@MusicMadMaurice PT73 was not a Higgins, nor was it an Elco...it was a British Vospers, modified to make it look like a PT. Notice that there is a step up in the gunwale some ways back from the bow; PT's had flat decks. The boat used in filming the series was originally purchased by Hughes Aircraft; she was acquired to be the tender for the Spruce Goose. I believe that it was also used at JFK's Inaugural parade on a giant float (no pun intended), dressed up to look like the PT109, as there were no more Elco boats available to use. It was later sold to Universal. The footage of the boat at speed was filmed running between Catalina Island and Long Beach, California. The boat pulling up to the dock was just a prop, towed into place.
@MusicMadMaurice PT73 was not a Higgins nor an Elco...it was a British Vospers, dressed up to look like a PT. Notice that the gunwale steps down a few feet aft of the bow. PT's had flat decks. The running boat used in the series was originally purchased by Hughes Aircraft for use as a tender for the Spruce Goose. She was also made into a giant parade float, dressed up to look like PT109 for JFK's Inaugural parade, as there were no remaining Elco boats available, and most people don't know the difference, anyway. Universal later purchased the boat; the shots you see of the boat at speed were filmed running between Catalina Island and Long Beach, California. All of the other shots in the lagoon or at a dock were done with other prop hulls that were simply towed into place.
@MusicMadMaurice Got it. I'm ashamed to say that it never occurred to me you were talking about the ACTUAL PT73...FYI, PT Boats, Inc. has a registry of all boat numbers assigned, their manufacturer, and configurations...just the REAL ones, not the ones from movies and television!
There's one of these magnificent boats on display in Fall River, Massachusetts. I've visited it several times over the years. It's also where the USS Massachusetts and the USS Sea lion (I think that's the name of the WWII sub) ended up. Really cool place to visit. An easy day trip from Boston or Providence.
Bullet Repair maybe !! Ford built 1/2 the jeeps in detroit and Willys built the other 1/2 so what was done on a army base for manufacture !????????? DUUUUUHH!!!!!!!!
Today, OSHA, would shut everyone of those places down and never let them open again! But that was when we ALL pulled together. A time that is sadly lost to the past.😥
That comment is silliness. OSHA is there to protect workers from injury and death. You must be remembering the good ol' days with a certain rosy tint to your vision. I wonder how many fingers, arms, legs, eyes and whole lives were lost due to unsafe working conditions. Even now, funding for OSHA is stupid low and very few employers get in trouble with OSHA.
@@RB-jv6un And you are a dufuss. Didn't need them when the Empire State Building was done. Didn't need them for the Hoover Dam or the Golden Gate Bridge. Those IDIOTS deal with what MIGHT happen, not what HAS happened. Go back to your mother's basement and she'll have your hot pockets ready in a little while.
Check out what the SWCC crews run today in the US Navy, Special Weapons Combat Crew.. The boats they run today are really amazing. Several videos on RUclips.
What a fun documentary! PT boats were a stop gap measure at the beginning of World War 2. They were produced quickly and used to slow, harass and complicate Japanese forces. This is a fun documentary as it can tell the American Public an exciting relatable story, early in the war, without releasing too much information to the enemy. Japanese certainly knew of the PT boats, (and after capture of one) would know the basic of construction and design; but that knowledge did not contain many big secrets as other boats and planes would have had. Even with full knowledge of construction techniques, Japan would need access to many resources it lacked. Japan has misjudged the effectiveness of PT boats, and did not have any similarly equipped vessels. Also by the time Japan might have been able to reverse engineer such an effective little boat; the USA had geared up and produced a massive number of larger vessels such as destroyers, aircraft carriers and submarines. Early in the war, America felt bad as news on all fronts in 1942 was depressing, this video showed we were doing something and gave an exciting celebratory look that did not reveal critical details to the enemy.
Sadly, great groups of them were assembled and burned when the war ended. If not destroyed in action they were killed off young. What shame that such craftsmanship was simply burned.
Yeah, a lot of planes were destroyed too. I'll have to do some research on that. My understanding is that they would have to keep a parts list and supply for each, so apparently that was the easiest thing for the crew that was assigned that task to do. Pretty amazing. Could anybody shed any light on this? What happened to everything?
@@TheNextGoogification A few PT Boats are still in existence, in museums and/or getting ready for the museums, being refurbished. Most of the things that you asked about were "simply" scrapped... like the PT Boats which were burned, tanks and planes were recycled for metal... Some things, Jeeps being a famous example, were sold at auctions and such. Rifles, ammo, mess kits, web-belts, canteens... were sold at military surplus stores which sprang up after the war, and used by civilians and such for things like camping. I remember reading somewhere that some of the PT Boats were sold to private owners, minus the weapons of course, but those 3 big Packards drank gas like... well... the proverbial sailor at a bar. They were simply too expensive to operate.
@@nyetzdyec3391 An uncle with seafaring connections and interests told me, some 40 odd years ago(and I am now 60) about one at Portrush Harbour that a bloke had bought for "stone nothing" and the horrendous amount of petrol it took to tune the carbs alone, all while sitting stationary. GULP!
@@marcusgault9909 According to everything I've read about PT Boats, and I started with "PT-109", about Jack Kennedy, back when I was ten or eleven... those three huge Packards were some *seriously* thirsty gas guzzlers! Thanks for passing along the story.
@Roy Baker: Higgins built a 78' variant which did not have the beautiful bow rake of the Elco 80 ft. Higgins often deviated from the Navy spec because they thought they knew more about building wooden boats than anybody.
Interesting to see a 20" slide rule; all I've ever seen, or owned, are 10" models. Love to find one of the bigger models. And, yes, I do know how to use one: including finding the decimal point.
My Dad taught slide rule in engineering school. He had one for class that was at least 6 feet long and on a rotary carriage with wheels so that you could turn it and either side could face the class. It was a K&E finely painted that yellow beige color. You had to be able to estimate the answer to place the commas and decimal places correctly. You developed a feel for the numbers. I went to college with a slide rule but professors could make up tests with random numbers and the hand calculator was just too fast by comparison for that reason. I had to throw a lot of hay for a basic TI calculator and later for the more advanced model that could do trig functions.
@@chrisworthen1538 Many of those large rules had the same size and spacing of numbers. The longer size allowed more digits for either larger numbers or more decimal places.
@@sequoyah59 We had one of those six foot slide rules in my high school in '65 that we were taught on. I first slide rule was made from Bamboo. Later I got a magnesium one because that didn't shrink or expand with the weather. I still have it, wish my son wanted it.
PT boats ran 41 litre Packard 4M-2500 V12 petrol engines. These engines were also used in most British WW2 MTB's including the Fairmiles and the Gay Class the last British MTB to use them. Saunders-Roe North Wales developed the Dark Class from the early 1950's with two Napier Deltic 18 cylinder supercharged two-stroke diesel engines. There were far more ecconomical, safer and produced 2,500 HP each against 1,500 HP Packards. The RR Merlins were approx 1,500 HP and were 27 litre so not the same.
@@dwightb2500 WHAT ????? Really???? All early Detroit diesels, Jimmys were 2 stroke. used in all Navy higgings landing craft, some sherman tanks !!! 2-71 4-71 6-71's were all inline, with 71 cubic inch displacement per cylinder !!! Later there were V series.. 6 8 12 16 cylinders and later a larger cylinder. 91 cu in !!!
To David Mills: We spent two years at Annapolis where Elco had a n extra production plant to build Vospers. I spent 7th and 8th grades there. Although closed down in june of '43 I did a few years ago run across the "secret manual" (with dad's special assignment number on the cover) which had every technical detail of that motor to the last nut and/or washer. Across the Severn the man from New mexico was getting his rockets into order. Goddard?? his right hand man had a son in my class at St. Mary's. ( Nils Lundquist)
It's hard to think but out of the hundreds or Possibly low Thousands of those PT boats made, only one single example remains. Yea, it's not most peoples idea of a pleasure craft when you need an engineering/bilge crew. Or even a captain to pilot the boat. 78' is no easy task in any marina. it's amazing the feeling of comradely team work you can feel from these people working to a common goal. Now days you can mostly feel the hate, from people who can only think of themselves, people living on welfare who don't understand that welfare is meant to be temporary while they recover from an injury or layoff. Welfare is not meant to be a permanent form of income.
Wayne Rainey there’s one of each manufacture at the PT Boat Museum In Fall River,Mass. But there’s an Elco in private hands in the North West and the WWII Museum has obtained and completely restored a Higgins PT that they keep on Lake Ponchartrain outside New Orleans. You can get a ride on her for a fee of around $300. Look up the museum on Google.
@soaringtractor it was the same design, only difference was the lenght, British made 8 different lenghts, the USA copied and mad them shorter that is all, Even the engine was the same, the 1920s RR merlin engine that they put into the RR silver ghost, Packard went to RR in the 20's to aquire the plans and a copy of the blue prints, there was 22 different cc engine sizes to the merlin, because orginally they was a car engine, they had to be down tuned for marine and its was a different tune for the air
Sequoyah 59.: So true! Myfather was at Annapolis where Elco had another plant to build the Scott Payne design originally British. By June 1943 Elco curtailed the boats and most of them in the Pacific were sent to Russia at Vladivostok because it was cheaper by far than getting them back to the U. S. (to do what???) Like the battleship and other large efforts they were obsolete before anyone could scratch them off. All lovers of these ducklings should read what the famous Admiral/historian wrote about them in his monster book of the WW2 Navy. Morrison was it?? He claimed that for all the flamboyance he challenged anyone to name a single MAJOR ship from anyone's navy sunk by the Mosq. boats of WW2. You Say?
minibike mad BULLSHIT !!!! THe PACKARD M2500 was ...ummm2500 CU in disp and the Merlin was but 1650 !!!! PACKARD was delivering them to the US Navy 3 years BEFORE RR showed up at PACKARD begging them to make the Merlin for the Brits... Packard made 14,000 M2500;s and 55,523 Merlins !!! Know what you are talking about or STFU !!!!! You dumb ass have either never seen either or are fukin blind !!! Not even similiar. Notice the name PACKARD cast in the valve cover ????? Packard merlins had a plain no name valve cover !!!! DUUUUUHH!!!!!!
Wilbur Finnigan Slight over reaction perhaps? Especially since the comment you are responding to is seven years old. Another overexcitable American are we?
Big Bill O'Reilly -- Did he hurt you ? The Truth will do that. You really are too sensitive. When you graduate, and meet reality for the first time you will be in for a shock.
@Big Bill O'Reilly - you need help child. See Dr. Phil sonny. Where did I say that you should “meet me”? You fantasize way too much, little one. Like I said, you will be blindsided by reality someday. TRUMP 2020 ! And please learn to read....
@Big Dork - It’s not possible for YOU to disgrace the uniform because YOU NEVER WORE the uniform. TRUMP 2020 MAGA KAG !!!! Get back under your rock, commie !
I might be crazy but if I got the plans to build just one of these boats I would have some company do so for me. Then of to go blow up some pirates...Hehehe
@@wilburfinnigan2142 You really ARE full of shit: Because gasoline is FAR more flammable than diesel fuel. Are you trying to prove how stupid you are? You're doing a good job.
@@currentbatches6205 gasoline is used in marine engines all the time. As long as it is respected and proper rules followed, it is perfectly safe. In a plywood boat, if you were being targeted by nip guns, a gasoline fire wasn't really your primary concern.
45 - 50 knots THESE boats WERE QUICK! GIANT KILLER is a good name - just think of it, a little thing like this capable of speeding in, knocking out a much larger vessel & then speeding away to do it AGAIN! What a WEAPON!!!
I'm pretty sure these usually got fueled by people on land using fuel from America. That was usually gasoline. Even the portable kitchens used gasoline powered cooking and hot water making equipment.
Larry Go back to 1937 and tell me what diesel engine existed that could make the kind of power needed !!! Remember dumb ass engines that exist today did NOT exist back then !!! 82 years ago !!! DUUUUHHH!!!!!!
@@lordgarion514 The problem was the fumes - which are heavier than air - gathering in the bilges. One spark and there's nothing left above the waterline.
The real giant killers of WWII were the submarines. In the Battle of the Philippine Sea in which there was the greatest naval air battle ever fought US subs sunk TWO of Japan's newest and finest Fleet Aircraft Carriers. Electric boats with a crew of less than a hundred killed huge ships with crews of thousands. No wonder Adm. Nimitz said they contributed so much to the war effort. But it was not only the destruction of warships that made them so valuable, but their use to cut off Japan's supplies of fuel and food and their use in recon as hidden outposts reporting the enemy's fleet advances which gave us the advantage in crucial battles.
Yes. The American submarine fleet was the most successful of all, even exceeding the German U-boats during the battle of The Atlantic. And they'd have done better still if they hadn't been plagued by dodgy torpedoes...
@@christiankrogstad7369 no not her,if it was a cat video that would be her,my phone shutdown and she was going into a shopping mall so to hush me up and keep me amused like a good little guy she let me keep her phone.she has gotten good as a baby setter,under 6 Barney over 60 ,the history channel and a 3 piece snack from KFC,s.hope you're staying warm,gb from SE Ky,thxs.gb
I'm not much on ship engines Packard made a supercharged more powerful variant of the Merlin for use in the P51 Fighter when the US Alison engine proved unsuitable thats when the P51 went from useless to great fighter
the Tabellarius The Allison powered Mustang was useless???? See RAF MUSTANGS here on You tube and educate your dumb ass !!!! ALLISON Mustang when introduced was THE fastes fighter in the sky !!! 30 MPH faster than a Mk V shitfie !!!!! PACKARD was contracted with by RR to build the Merlin FOR THE BRITS !!!!! DUUUUUUHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!
@MusicMadMaurice Not only that there were 14,000 Curtis P40's built with the Allison and inservice before the war and all through the war in ALL theaters used by all allied countries, not to mention 10,000 P38's P39's P63's !!! The Allison was a better engine, more modern, simplier, and had a much better cam/rocker arm assembly, roller and stronger rods. it was better than the merlin, and ONLY the later 60 series merlin with the then NEW 2 stage high altitude supercharger bettered the Allison and ONLY above 20,000 ft !!! FACTS !!!
this country doesn't have the people with the skills to build these now even if they were wanted by the navy those folks were craftsmen and women back then,the same with all the old trades they are all but gone and forgotten
I think you might be surprised. There is still plenty of craftsmanship in the US. The difference is that the marine industry has changed a lot in 80 years.
Chimera REALLY ?????? Are you saying only Brits can invent, design, build modern machinery !!! You are full of shit !!! The US Navys PT boats were built to their spec and some input fromBrits design influenced the US Idea !!!! DUUUUHHHH!!!!!! THis video is about the US Navys PT Boats Not your limey crap !!!
southerneruk NOPE !!!! Maybe Brit influenenced but both Elco and Higgins designed and built in the USA !!! Sorry limey you lose again !!! You SOB cannot take credit for that design !!!!
@@southerneruk NOPE you are wrong !!! Yes the IDEA cam from the British boat but was designed by Elco and Higgins, whose is a slightly different design, longer !!! Facts NOT blind BULLSHIT hype !!!
@@wilburfinnigan2142 The USA Government put for tenders, two companys applied both took part in the power boat races, Higgings design was good but took to long to build, it also used up more timber, the design was the British design that was used and that is fact
@@southerneruk BULLSHIT !!!!!! Then by your reasoning ALL British aircraft are copies of American planes because the Wright Bros designed and flew the first flyable , controlable aircraft !! Right ???? NOPE !!!
THE "ONLY REASON" ANYONE EVER HEARD OF THE PT-BOATS was because of a show on early TV,called "MC HALES NAVY.".and it showed just how completey incompentant the US NAVY REALLY IS....and always has been....
No fibre glass, no carbon fiber, no calculators, no computers. Just slide rules, glue, wood laminates, hardwork and commitment. Amazing.
I was surprised to see electric drills and screwdrivers. I'm reminded of when my Dad and I built a wooden kit boat, a 16 foot run- about. Every screw (and there were hundreds) was hand driven. No wonder I have carpal tunnel syndrome!!!
@Thomas Britton LOTS of elbow grease (plus a bit of Swedish steam) !!!
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Absolutely!
I had the opportunity as a younger man in the early 80’s to work at the Elco Marina in Bayonne. We used the same boat lifting crane to launch pleasure boats then too. I’m certainly glad I had the pleasure to do so. Thanx for sharing these historical videos.
Wow, the design and assembly of these fast boats is amazing. The great craftsmanship of the builders is so visible through the different phases of construction that it shows another reason why we call them THE GREATEST GENERATION. Makes me more proud that I'm an American.
Made when there more workers than pencil pushers. Great video!
Thank you...I am very fond of PT's and I thouroughly enjoyed the series... what a beauty these boats were. They must have smelled great below deck, when they were brand-spankin' new. I have spoken to a few guy who served on PT's and they said the sound of the engines at full throttle was one of the most beautiful sounds they ever heard. Peace.
I was very fortunate to have been able to get a ride in a modified PT boat when I was 10 years old, there was 3 of them, they were docked in a little town called ocean City NJ, what a ride I will never forget it.
Daniel Torrens
They used to go out of a restaurant alongside the 9th st bridge.
Chris's or Hogates.
saw them many times.
Thanks for the video. I never realized how much work went into building a PT boat. As a teen I had thoughts of building one but cost and time got in the way, and there is no way I could have replicated the lamination processes used in construction. Learned much from the three videos.
Working in those days must have been fun, it sure looked like all those workers were having a great time building these PT's. I wish that camaraderie still existed today. Where I live in Rhode Island they trained the crew for the PT's near Newport. My Mom told me you could hear those boats from miles away roaring across Narragansett Bay... America has so much pride back then, I hope I get to see it again before my time is up!
Amen. We are so fractured today. Quite a shame for such a fine, fine country. The world's best!!
Well if you are gonna see it, you better get a move on.
@soaringtractor Antifa and BLM are the US's version of Germany's Brown Shirts!
@@michaelfitzgerald434 What does that make the rioters of Jan 6?
The most awesome boat EVER built.
I never cease to be amazed by the technology leaps in such relatively short periods of time.
My grandmother was a welder during the war at Huston Ship Yard and my other granny worked as a machinist at Hughes Aircraft.
Between 1969-1971, I kept my 50' trawler in the New ELCO Marina. At first, I didn't recognize the significance of the few empty warehouses that hugged the quayside, but it was apparent that they had been used to construct ships. There was no security, and I wandered around the complex. All that remained from this video was that final assembly building, four covered slips, the crane and the outer ring of protective pilings in Newark Bay. At some point, the New ELCO Marina had been created, with floats providing for small craft slips and a barge equipped with a commercial tavern and restaurant. At one time, I used that crane to haul and inspect my vessel's hull. I moved from the area and sold my trawler to the marina owner, who later crashed the trawler into that Central of New Jersey railroad bridge (was just south of the marina). I have a picture of my ex-trawler, stripped and sunk in the mud of the most northerly slip. The site of the ELCO (Electric Launch Company) plant is at 40°39'23.30" N, 74°08'13.07" W. The entire site has been re-purposed into a small new marina and a condo housing complex. The large crane, now non-functional, was relocated about 3 miles north, in Rutkowski Park at 40°41'22.43" N, 74°06'46.47" W. I wonder if there is at least a commemorative plaque at the old defense plant site?
Thanks I was wondering what happened to those facilities.
Proud to say my mama was a Rosie The Riveter, part of The Greatest Generation.
@MusicMadMaurice Built bombers in Cleveland Ohio, and she was proud to tell you about it too.
@MusicMadMaurice I have got some great photo's of her and a newspaper write up.I wish I could post it here.
Thanks, great film. I think we could use a few of these off Somalia. Cutters and cruisers are great, but the power of a fast, light gunboat can be awesome.
Are you one of those pirates?
Yes, and do you know what the Navy did with the PT boats in the Pacific at the end of the war? They were brought to Ulithi Atoll and Manila and burned in deep water. Great payback from a "grateful" Navy.
We were sailing in Lake Michigan back in the 70's, on our way from Charlevoix to Mackinac Island. We could hear a power boat coming from behind us for 30 to 40 minutes before we saw it. Turned out to be a guy from Chicago that had converted a Higgins PT boat to a pleasure yacht. He circled around us a couple times, and then "poured on the coal", and away it went. It was an amazing experience for a sailor who wasn't into power boats, but I'd have owned that one!
Amazing Production of these beautifull PT's. Love the video
My Dad rode these in the South Pacific during WWII and seen a lot of action. I rode the PCF Boats in Vietnam. (Patrol Craft Fast) Swift Boats for short. Seen a lot of action there too.
Bertram made most of those right? To share a pitcher of beer and hear some of your tales would be amazing sir. Thanks for your service.
I've only been on one floating matchstick, very old and still agile in the 70's . Loved the feel of the boat nothing but perfection, both Higgens and ELCO built similar boats. From what the old salts told me ELCO boats were stronger but not faster. I spent three tours in riverine and all of those TAD. Mostly on Swifties, Nasties and PRB's. The ELCO boat was superior! It's amazing how capable and versatile they were. Like the Mosquito was, they proved that metal isn't the only answer. Nothing made in the 60's could math them!!
Great vid! Thanks for posting it. It goes to show what Americans are capable of doing TOGETHER when we stop yelling at each other. I hope folks can remember that such working together is what has always made this country great. And I hope it doesn't take another Pearl Harbor for us to get that.
The last one: 911, divided us like nothing else has. So, no, I don't want another one.
TYVM for a fine and long-ago presentation.
My old man was a radio operator aboard PT'S in the south pacific during WW2, Training was somewhere in Rhode island, but he said they went to Bayonne to see the boats they were going to man being built--- Cool video, thanks-- just remembered, one of the boats he was assigned to name was the "Bayonne Bitch"
I love this in color! built in my birthplace. In Bayonne NJ. I love when the boat goes under the Bayonne Bridge!
As of last summer there was a PT Boat under reconstruction at the Liberty Air Museum in Port Clinton, Ohio.
Thank you for posting this...I love PTs
My favorite boat of all time. What a shame that most of them were destroyed.
See ruclips.net/video/BA4pC0WScJw/видео.html
Also, Higgins made some similar boats (I think in Pascagoula). See ruclips.net/video/vTkvl-JzkZc/видео.html
Fantastic, now I know why Captain Bingington was on McHales back so much about the PT73, he knew how much work went into those boats. Amazing footage.
Awesome doco, thanks for sharing, it would be awesome too see a PT built with modern technology and equipment and upgrades, modern turbo diesel engines with jet propulsion and an old one restored to almost new condition for a comparison and to see how far technology has really come.
My Dad served on PT Boats. He was in Ron 19 stationed at Tulagi in the Soloman Islands. He was also awarded Purple hearts. The only time I ever saw him choked up was when Walter Cronkite broke in and said JFK had been shot. It was a sad time at our house for a while.
I really wish he could have seen these video's. Thank You.
The shot from the bridge is incredible. As the PT speeds into the little bay, you see how big and powerful the PT is. In the great blue ocean they look small. Blowing up the east river at full throttle you see a bad ass boat the PT was...
MY husband went to Elco when he was a kid my father-in-law worked there............he was a test pilot
beautiful just beautiful
super, thanks for posting
P.T. 73 from "McHale's Navy" was originally built by the British & used by the USAAF as Air Sea Rescue boats during WWII. I believe there were 3 of them used in the series. One was destroyed later, after the series ended, when it broke loose from its dock moorings & drifted out to sea & eventually was smashed to pieces on shore rocks. Another, stripped down boat did a cameo appearance in the T.V. series "Emergency". It was on a flatbed trailer, which collapses on top of someone , trapping them underneath. You can still see the faded "PT73" on the bow. The fate of the 3rd. boat is unknown 🚣
Excellent video cheers
Amazing! thank you so much!
Nice series.
awsome video .. thanks..
Had a chance this summer to visit one of the very last PT boats left in war set up in Portland OR. Sadly it was out of the water for maintenance so didn't get to see it run. Very amazing to see the Packard engines new out of the box! There were several in pieces in Portland and the ones on the boat I didn't get to see.
Then you haven't heard of PT-305, down in New Orleans. She too, was painstakingly rebuilt and now runs on Lake Ponchitrane, the same test waters the Higgins boats used for test runs fresh from the factory. It costs around $350 for a ride. The 305 is an actual combat veteran with two nazi kills earned (2 German F-lighters, a kind of heavily armed barge) and the name "USS SUDDEN JERK" painted on the bow. The boat is set up to look exactly like it did when it served in the Mediterranean Theater.
@@ronaldrobertson2332 Clearly I need to get out more! lol
GREAT VIDEO. PT BOATS HAVE ALWAYS BEEN MY FAVORITE. I AM CURRENTLY RESTORING A ITO MODEL OF A PT BOAT. U CAN SEE IT ON YOU TUBE,
Insane background music !
Now I know why I enjoyed Mchales Navy so much PT 73 and J.F.K. P.T.109
@MusicMadMaurice PT73 was not a Higgins, nor was it an Elco...it was a British Vospers, modified to make it look like a PT. Notice that there is a step up in the gunwale some ways back from the bow; PT's had flat decks. The boat used in filming the series was originally purchased by Hughes Aircraft; she was acquired to be the tender for the Spruce Goose. I believe that it was also used at JFK's Inaugural parade on a giant float (no pun intended), dressed up to look like the PT109, as there were no more Elco boats available to use. It was later sold to Universal. The footage of the boat at speed was filmed running between Catalina Island and Long Beach, California. The boat pulling up to the dock was just a prop, towed into place.
@MusicMadMaurice PT73 was not a Higgins nor an Elco...it was a British Vospers, dressed up to look like a PT. Notice that the gunwale steps down a few feet aft of the bow. PT's had flat decks. The running boat used in the series was originally purchased by Hughes Aircraft for use as a tender for the Spruce Goose. She was also made into a giant parade float, dressed up to look like PT109 for JFK's Inaugural parade, as there were no remaining Elco boats available, and most people don't know the difference, anyway. Universal later purchased the boat; the shots you see of the boat at speed were filmed running between Catalina Island and Long Beach, California. All of the other shots in the lagoon or at a dock were done with other prop hulls that were simply towed into place.
@MusicMadMaurice Got it. I'm ashamed to say that it never occurred to me you were talking about the ACTUAL PT73...FYI, PT Boats, Inc. has a registry of all boat numbers assigned, their manufacturer, and configurations...just the REAL ones, not the ones from movies and television!
There's one of these magnificent boats on display in Fall River, Massachusetts. I've visited it several times over the years. It's also where the USS Massachusetts and the USS Sea lion (I think that's the name of the WWII sub) ended up. Really cool place to visit. An easy day trip from Boston or Providence.
WoW I always want more info on PT boats thx
My father helped build Jeeps at Fort Benjamin Harrison and my Mother helped build and assemble the Norden bomb site at Navel Avionics.
Bullet Repair maybe !! Ford built 1/2 the jeeps in detroit and Willys built the other 1/2 so what was done on a army base for manufacture !????????? DUUUUUHH!!!!!!!!
Today, OSHA, would shut everyone of those places down and never let them open again! But that was when we ALL pulled together. A time that is sadly lost to the past.😥
That comment is silliness. OSHA is there to protect workers from injury and death. You must be remembering the good ol' days with a certain rosy tint to your vision. I wonder how many fingers, arms, legs, eyes and whole lives were lost due to unsafe working conditions. Even now, funding for OSHA is stupid low and very few employers get in trouble with OSHA.
@@RB-jv6un And you are a dufuss. Didn't need them when the Empire State Building was done. Didn't need them for the Hoover Dam or the Golden Gate Bridge. Those IDIOTS deal with what MIGHT happen, not what HAS happened. Go back to your mother's basement and she'll have your hot pockets ready in a little while.
R B OSHA is a blood sucking abomination to a productive work force, the bastards there never knew how to use a hammer!
David It was war time and people were dying waiting for war supplies !!! Damn the safety git er done !!!!
Proudly name you 57 ... breaks beer bottle on the bow.
Check out what the SWCC crews run today in the US Navy, Special Weapons Combat Crew.. The boats they run today are really amazing. Several videos on RUclips.
What a fun documentary! PT boats were a stop gap measure at the beginning of World War 2. They were produced quickly and used to slow, harass and complicate Japanese forces. This is a fun documentary as it can tell the American Public an exciting relatable story, early in the war, without releasing too much information to the enemy. Japanese certainly knew of the PT boats, (and after capture of one) would know the basic of construction and design; but that knowledge did not contain many big secrets as other boats and planes would have had. Even with full knowledge of construction techniques, Japan would need access to many resources it lacked. Japan has misjudged the effectiveness of PT boats, and did not have any similarly equipped vessels. Also by the time Japan might have been able to reverse engineer such an effective little boat; the USA had geared up and produced a massive number of larger vessels such as destroyers, aircraft carriers and submarines. Early in the war, America felt bad as news on all fronts in 1942 was depressing, this video showed we were doing something and gave an exciting celebratory look that did not reveal critical details to the enemy.
Sadly, great groups of them were assembled and burned when the war ended. If not destroyed in action they were killed off young. What shame that such craftsmanship was simply burned.
Yeah, a lot of planes were destroyed too. I'll have to do some research on that. My understanding is that they would have to keep a parts list and supply for each, so apparently that was the easiest thing for the crew that was assigned that task to do. Pretty amazing. Could anybody shed any light on this? What happened to everything?
@@TheNextGoogification A few PT Boats are still in existence, in museums and/or getting ready for the museums, being refurbished.
Most of the things that you asked about were "simply" scrapped... like the PT Boats which were burned, tanks and planes were recycled for metal...
Some things, Jeeps being a famous example, were sold at auctions and such. Rifles, ammo, mess kits, web-belts, canteens... were sold at military surplus stores which sprang up after the war, and used by civilians and such for things like camping.
I remember reading somewhere that some of the PT Boats were sold to private owners, minus the weapons of course, but those 3 big Packards drank gas like... well... the proverbial sailor at a bar. They were simply too expensive to operate.
@eclemensen You're welcome.
@@nyetzdyec3391 An uncle with seafaring connections and interests told me, some 40 odd years ago(and I am now 60) about one at Portrush Harbour that a bloke had bought for "stone nothing" and the horrendous amount of petrol it took to tune the carbs alone, all while sitting stationary.
GULP!
@@marcusgault9909 According to everything I've read about PT Boats, and I started with "PT-109", about Jack Kennedy, back when I was ten or eleven... those three huge Packards were some *seriously* thirsty gas guzzlers!
Thanks for passing along the story.
I love this in color! built in my birthplace. In Bayonne NJ.
Also built by Higgins in New Orleans.
@Roy Baker: Higgins built a 78' variant which did not have the beautiful bow rake of the Elco 80 ft. Higgins often deviated from the Navy spec because they thought they knew more about building wooden boats than anybody.
Alright, you sold me. Where do I get one?
Interesting to see a 20" slide rule; all I've ever seen, or owned, are 10" models. Love to find one of the bigger models. And, yes, I do know how to use one: including finding the decimal point.
Most likely necessary while underway. A ten inch would be tough to read with all of the vibration and bouncing around.
My Dad taught slide rule in engineering school. He had one for class that was at least 6 feet long and on a rotary carriage with wheels so that you could turn it and either side could face the class. It was a K&E finely painted that yellow beige color. You had to be able to estimate the answer to place the commas and decimal places correctly. You developed a feel for the numbers. I went to college with a slide rule but professors could make up tests with random numbers and the hand calculator was just too fast by comparison for that reason. I had to throw a lot of hay for a basic TI calculator and later for the more advanced model that could do trig functions.
@@chrisworthen1538 Many of those large rules had the same size and spacing of numbers. The longer size allowed more digits for either larger numbers or more decimal places.
@@sequoyah59 We had one of those six foot slide rules in my high school in '65 that we were taught on. I first slide rule was made from Bamboo. Later I got a magnesium one because that didn't shrink or expand with the weather. I still have it, wish my son wanted it.
PT boat = night fighter.
Sitting duck during the day.
I always thought the PT boats were made of aluminum or steel. This 3 part series blew my mind.
@soaringtractor I'll see what I can do, but no promises.
Proud pre-cupcake Marine w/ 2 Vietnam tours with Ground combat units as an Artillery F.O. Fought them there and I intend to fight them here.
MusicMadMaurice - No ! Not the Vietnamese ! You commies ! Even the Vietnamese hate you people.
Looks good
Made in America!..YESSSSS!!!!
@MusicManMaurice it was not a British design. It was a concept from Britain, but the actual design was all American.
PT boats ran 41 litre Packard 4M-2500 V12 petrol engines. These engines were also used in most British WW2 MTB's including the Fairmiles and the Gay Class the last British MTB to use them. Saunders-Roe North Wales developed the Dark Class from the early 1950's with two Napier Deltic 18 cylinder supercharged two-stroke diesel engines. There were far more ecconomical, safer and produced 2,500 HP each against 1,500 HP Packards. The RR Merlins were approx 1,500 HP and were 27 litre so not the same.
These boats were gas guzzlers!
I never heard of a two stroke diesel engine. I'll have to Google that one!
@@dwightb2500 WHAT ????? Really???? All early Detroit diesels, Jimmys were 2 stroke. used in all Navy higgings landing craft, some sherman tanks !!! 2-71 4-71 6-71's were all inline, with 71 cubic inch displacement per cylinder !!! Later there were V series.. 6 8 12 16 cylinders and later a larger cylinder. 91 cu in !!!
To David Mills: We spent two years at Annapolis where Elco had a n extra production plant to build Vospers. I spent 7th and 8th grades there. Although closed down in june of '43 I did a few years ago run across the "secret manual" (with dad's special assignment number on the cover) which had every technical detail of that motor to the last nut and/or washer. Across the Severn the man from New mexico was getting his rockets into order. Goddard?? his right hand man had a son in my class at St. Mary's. ( Nils Lundquist)
Some big girls working there
These brave men risked their lives to deliver the defective Mark 8 torpedo.
It's hard to think but out of the hundreds or Possibly low Thousands of those PT boats made, only one single example remains. Yea, it's not most peoples idea of a pleasure craft when you need an engineering/bilge crew. Or even a captain to pilot the boat. 78' is no easy task in any marina.
it's amazing the feeling of comradely team work you can feel from these people working to a common goal. Now days you can mostly feel the hate, from people who can only think of themselves, people living on welfare who don't understand that welfare is meant to be temporary while they recover from an injury or layoff. Welfare is not meant to be a permanent form of income.
Wayne Rainey there’s one of each manufacture at the PT Boat Museum In Fall River,Mass. But there’s an Elco in private hands in the North West and the WWII Museum has obtained and completely restored a Higgins PT that they keep on Lake Ponchartrain outside New Orleans. You can get a ride on her for a fee of around $300. Look up the museum on Google.
@@fw1421 I think the WW2 Museum is restoring a second one too.
Richard Autry I hadn’t heard of a second PT,I’ll have to check on that.
I think the RAF used the lend Lease boats strictly on combat ops. They had a domestic boat of about 55' for air sea rescue.
PT's 49-58 , PT-20 class 77-footers, were lend-leased to Great Britain early in the war and were known as "BPT's" or British Patrol Torpedo.
to the modern eye, the lack of hearing and eye protection or even gloves is amazing.
We could use an update PT boat in the Persian Gulf. A few hundred of these could easily cause Iran and others a lot of grief.
What we've got there now could easily reduce their whole mohammaden revolution to smoking ashes.
@@alswann2702 Yes but the question is are we willing to use it?
@@alswann2702 That's for stoopids.
Built and made in the USA.
Quality.
@soaringtractor it was the same design, only difference was the lenght, British made 8 different lenghts, the USA copied and mad them shorter that is all, Even the engine was the same, the 1920s RR merlin engine that they put into the RR silver ghost, Packard went to RR in the 20's to aquire the plans and a copy of the blue prints, there was 22 different cc engine sizes to the merlin, because orginally they was a car engine, they had to be down tuned for marine and its was a different tune for the air
A variation on a British design. In fact, the PT-73 from 'McHale's Navy' was actually a British Vosper.
Id like one of those Packard Engines for my hotrod..oh wait someone already did it.
Randy its been done several times !! See here on You Tube !!!!
Besides a quick way to get fired would be to damage one of these finished boats on the way to the water!
The film is actually sped up. Skilled workers, though.
All that labor intensive work to build them but they were expendable.
Check out the hard turn at 9:20.
так виглядає якісна робота. Зброя перемоги.
Sequoyah 59.: So true! Myfather was at Annapolis where Elco had another plant to build the Scott Payne design originally British. By June 1943 Elco curtailed the boats and most of them in the Pacific were sent to Russia at Vladivostok because it was cheaper by far than getting them back to the U. S. (to do what???) Like the battleship and other large efforts they were obsolete before anyone could scratch them off. All lovers of these ducklings should read what the famous Admiral/historian wrote about them in his monster book of the WW2 Navy. Morrison was it?? He claimed that for all the flamboyance he challenged anyone to name a single MAJOR ship from anyone's navy sunk by the Mosq. boats of WW2. You Say?
I allways thought they had RR merlin power... those packards look identical!
minibike mad BULLSHIT !!!! THe PACKARD M2500 was ...ummm2500 CU in disp and the Merlin was but 1650 !!!! PACKARD was delivering them to the US Navy 3 years BEFORE RR showed up at PACKARD begging them to make the Merlin for the Brits... Packard made 14,000 M2500;s and 55,523 Merlins !!! Know what you are talking about or STFU !!!!! You dumb ass have either never seen either or are fukin blind !!! Not even similiar. Notice the name PACKARD cast in the valve cover ????? Packard merlins had a plain no name valve cover !!!! DUUUUUHH!!!!!!
Wilbur Finnigan Slight over reaction perhaps? Especially since the comment you are responding to is seven years old. Another overexcitable American are we?
@@spencerwilton5831 I tire very quickly of brainless idiot and their uninformed BULLSHIT stories !!!
Proud pre-snowflake America.
Big Bill O'Reilly -- Did he hurt you ? The Truth will do that. You really are too sensitive. When you graduate, and meet reality for the first time you will be in for a shock.
@Big Bill O'Reilly - you need help child. See Dr. Phil sonny. Where did I say that you should “meet me”? You fantasize way too much, little one. Like I said, you will be blindsided by reality someday. TRUMP 2020 ! And please learn to read....
@Big Dork - It’s not possible for YOU to disgrace the uniform because YOU NEVER WORE the uniform. TRUMP 2020 MAGA KAG !!!! Get back under your rock, commie !
I might be crazy but if I got the plans to build just one of these boats I would have some company do so for me. Then of to go blow up some pirates...Hehehe
2:16 - Gas engines! I knew that, but it just dawned on me how dangerous that was.
Current Why ???? The fuel tanks were self sealing rubber lined as in an aircraft !!!
@@wilburfinnigan2142 You really ARE full of shit: Because gasoline is FAR more flammable than diesel fuel.
Are you trying to prove how stupid you are? You're doing a good job.
@@currentbatches6205 ikr? Gas stations and cars are blowing up all the time! Not to mention airplanes! Gasoline is sooo dangerous!
@@randymagnum143 Bozo.
@@currentbatches6205 gasoline is used in marine engines all the time. As long as it is respected and proper rules followed, it is perfectly safe. In a plywood boat, if you were being targeted by nip guns, a gasoline fire wasn't really your primary concern.
The America that used to be...........
@Rob Lloyd. that is changing.
Yeah, well, nothing is ever like 'the good ol' days', is it?
45 - 50 knots THESE boats WERE QUICK! GIANT KILLER is a good name - just think of it, a little thing like this capable of speeding in, knocking out a much larger vessel & then speeding away to do it AGAIN! What a WEAPON!!!
They didn't go that fast. They lost steerage over about 40 knots due to rudder cavitation.
They wouldn't have been much in a sloppy seaway either.
Go Navy! 👍👏🇺🇸
Often wondered why gasoline power rather than diesel?
I'm pretty sure these usually got fueled by people on land using fuel from America. That was usually gasoline. Even the portable kitchens used gasoline powered cooking and hot water making equipment.
Larry Go back to 1937 and tell me what diesel engine existed that could make the kind of power needed !!! Remember dumb ass engines that exist today did NOT exist back then !!! 82 years ago !!! DUUUUHHH!!!!!!
@@lordgarion514 The problem was the fumes - which are heavier than air - gathering in the bilges. One spark and there's nothing left above the waterline.
The real giant killers of WWII were the submarines. In the Battle of the Philippine Sea in which there was the greatest naval air battle ever fought US subs sunk TWO of Japan's newest and finest Fleet Aircraft Carriers. Electric boats with a crew of less than a hundred killed huge ships with crews of thousands. No wonder Adm. Nimitz said they contributed so much to the war effort. But it was not only the destruction of warships that made them so valuable, but their use to cut off Japan's supplies of fuel and food and their use in recon as hidden outposts reporting the enemy's fleet advances which gave us the advantage in crucial battles.
Yes. The American submarine fleet was the most successful of all, even exceeding the German U-boats during the battle of The Atlantic. And they'd have done better still if they hadn't been plagued by dodgy torpedoes...
@James Reilly Yes in combat it is a phantom. But not afterward.
To Larry Tischler: So right! Many Experts of WW2 history detail that the US subs had more to do with the strangulation of Japan than did the B-29.
I want one
How did they compare with the German boats?. The British called them 'E' boats; 'E' for enemy.
Like to know how much money they cost then .
Andrea Miller?
@@christiankrogstad7369 no not her,if it was a cat video that would be her,my phone shutdown and she was going into a shopping mall so to hush me up and keep me amused like a good little guy she let me keep her phone.she has gotten good as a baby setter,under 6 Barney over 60 ,the history channel and a 3 piece snack from KFC,s.hope you're staying warm,gb from SE Ky,thxs.gb
I'm not much on ship engines Packard made a supercharged more powerful variant of the Merlin for use in the P51 Fighter when the US Alison engine proved unsuitable thats when the P51 went from useless to great fighter
the Tabellarius The Allison powered Mustang was useless???? See RAF MUSTANGS here on You tube and educate your dumb ass !!!! ALLISON Mustang when introduced was THE fastes fighter in the sky !!! 30 MPH faster than a Mk V shitfie !!!!! PACKARD was contracted with by RR to build the Merlin FOR THE BRITS !!!!! DUUUUUUHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!
@MusicMadMaurice Not only that there were 14,000 Curtis P40's built with the Allison and inservice before the war and all through the war in ALL theaters used by all allied countries, not to mention 10,000 P38's P39's P63's !!! The Allison was a better engine, more modern, simplier, and had a much better cam/rocker arm assembly, roller and stronger rods. it was better than the merlin, and ONLY the later 60 series merlin with the then NEW 2 stage high altitude supercharger bettered the Allison and ONLY above 20,000 ft !!! FACTS !!!
Well change my rate to a boatswain's mate...
don't do that i was a bos'n no job operatunites but you'll make a outstanding maid
this country doesn't have the people with the skills to build these now even if they were wanted by the navy those folks were craftsmen and women back then,the same with all the old trades they are all but gone and forgotten
I think you might be surprised. There is still plenty of craftsmanship in the US. The difference is that the marine industry has changed a lot in 80 years.
Look, it's a girl welder!
American made.
Based on a British design.
No mention of British contribution? This wouldn't have been possible without them.
Nope! No mention.
Chimera REALLY ?????? Are you saying only Brits can invent, design, build modern machinery !!! You are full of shit !!! The US Navys PT boats were built to their spec and some input fromBrits design influenced the US Idea !!!! DUUUUHHHH!!!!!! THis video is about the US Navys PT Boats Not your limey crap !!!
Uhmm?
British Design and built in the USA.
southerneruk NOPE !!!! Maybe Brit influenenced but both Elco and Higgins designed and built in the USA !!! Sorry limey you lose again !!! You SOB cannot take credit for that design !!!!
@@wilburfinnigan2142 Sorry your wrong, it was the British Design that was used, the design came out of Southampton Waters UK at a place called Hythe
@@southerneruk NOPE you are wrong !!! Yes the IDEA cam from the British boat but was designed by Elco and Higgins, whose is a slightly different design, longer !!! Facts NOT blind BULLSHIT hype !!!
@@wilburfinnigan2142 The USA Government put for tenders, two companys applied both took part in the power boat races, Higgings design was good but took to long to build, it also used up more timber, the design was the British design that was used and that is fact
@@southerneruk BULLSHIT !!!!!! Then by your reasoning ALL British aircraft are copies of American planes because the Wright Bros designed and flew the first flyable , controlable aircraft !! Right ???? NOPE !!!
THE "ONLY REASON" ANYONE EVER HEARD OF THE PT-BOATS was because of a show on early TV,called "MC HALES NAVY.".and it showed just how completey incompentant the US NAVY REALLY IS....and always has been....
Ever heard of PT109 and John F. Kennedy? That is typically the first you will hear about it. Not a sitcom
A very stupid show, disgrace of a noble fighting force coming from Hollywood.
Foxtrot/ Uniform/Charlie/Kilo// Yankee/Oscar/Uniform///
@@rogerk2049 FU2
@@rogerk2049 That was a comedy. Do you not know how to laugh?
I love this in color! built in my birthplace. In Bayonne NJ. I love when the boat goes under the Bayonne Bridge!
Yea back when n j wasn't a shithole
I love this in color! built in my birthplace. In Bayonne NJ. I love when the boat goes under the Bayonne Bridge!