You are welcome Roy, I wish you luck on your build. My son bought a 1/20 scale PT 103 boat a while back that needs a lot of work. I don't realize the thought of having to do another one.
Lew

Great subject Lew. Al Ross, who you no doubt know of, lives just down the road from me. I am sure he approves of your effort, as well as I do.

Thanks Lew,

You have put a lot of time and effort into those figures to transform them from a pit team to a PT crew, well done but you've just scared me, by making me realize, how much more work I have to do!

Regards Roy

Hello Roy,
I tried to be as comprehensive as I can and putting information on the PT 59, 60, and 61 boats on my website (link:

http://lewsmodelboats.org/PT-Uniforms.htm).

Hi Lew,
I was wondering about the 1:20 crew, I am building a PT 103 from scratch its also 1:20 scale.
Did you make them or are they part of the Frank's kit?
Hope to restart the build soon as have not touched it for a couple of years.

Regards Roy

Updated:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/264672290559

Some inexpensive Motors, see photo for numbers.

Nic boat. What motors are you using?

PT61:
Photo 1: Well armed crew - May 1943
Photo 2: Japanese 4.7 inch round through the bow (kept on a plane to get home) - Nov 1942

The "navsource" citation is incorrect☹️:
In the Solomon Islands in 1943, three 77-foot (23 m) PT boats, PT-59, PT-60, and PT-61, were converted into "PT gunboats" by stripping them of all original armament except the two twin .50 cal (12.7 mm) gun mounts, then adding two 40mm and four twin .50 cal (12.7 mm) mounts.

Should be😊:
In the Solomon Islands in late 1943, three 77-foot (23 m) PT boats, PT-59, PT-60, and PT-61, were converted into "PT gunboats" by stripping them of all original armament (basically the 20mm Oerlikon and two torpedoes) except the two twin .50 cal (12.7 mm) in gun mounts. The 59 then added two twin .50 cal (12.7 mm) and six single .50 cal (12.7 mm) mounts. The 60 and 61 added six twin .50 cal (12.7 mm) in mounts. All three received two US Army M1 40mm Bofors anti aircraft field guns placed on custom pedestals. All boats added armor on the bridge and sides in addition to the gun shields.

It should be noted that all the additional weight significantly reduced the high speed of the boats, a high price to pay for all that added firepower. 60 and 61 now have a total of two 40mm Bofors 💥💥 and 16 .50 cal BMGs 💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥💥 packed into a 77 foot boat!

This is why I had to build the PT61 - lots of research time but well worth it.

Video (in the water):

Hi Shipmates,

77' Elco Motor Torpedo Boat:
Planned as PTC-29
Reclassified PT-61 in June 1941
Laid down 2 August 1941 by the Electric Boat Co., Elco Works, Bayonne, NJ
Reclassified BPT-13 prior to completion
Launched 15 October 1941
Reclassified PT-61 in December 1941
Placed in service 19 February 1942 and assigned to Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron FOUR (MTBRon 4) under the command of LCDR Alan R. Montgomery, USN
MTBRon 4 was the training squadron, based at the MTB Squadrons Training Center, Melville, R.I. It was the largest squadron, having a peak of 28 boats in service at one time
Transferred 7 May 1942 to Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron TWO (MTBRon 2) under the command of LCDR Earl S. Caldwell, USN
MTBRon 2 in December 1941, with 11 new 77' Elco boats, the squadron was assigned to the Panama Sea Frontier. Then late in 1942, with six 77' Elco boats and six 80' Elco boats, it was shipped to the
South Pacific, where it was active in the Solomons campaign, engaging in many strenuous night actions with the Tokyo Express in the defense of Guadalcanal
Transferred 27 July 1942 to Motor Torpedo Boat Squadron THREE(2), (MTBRon 3[2]) under the command of under the command of LCDR Alan R. Montgomery, USN
The second Squadron 3 was the first squadron to arrive in the Solomon's, and fought many strenuous engagements with the Tokyo Express at Guadalcanal
Converted to a field-modified "gunboat" in 1943 in the Solomon Islands
Reclassified as a Small Boat, C-68371, 16 February 1944 and used as a small boat in the Solomon's area transporting personnel, mail, etc.
Fate unknown.

from

http://www.navsource.org/archives/12/05061.htm

http://www.pt103.com/PT_61.html

WOW!!!
That’s awesome!
I have the 1/20 Dumas boat with a lot of Franks PT boat fittings.

Oh you are great the PT Boat forum is where I got a lot of information for this boat. I also do have posts out there on the Forum as well as pictures in the gallery. Thanks for your comment. Lew.

1/20 scale and 47-1/4 inches long. The weight is about 20 pounds.

Very nice job. Frank would be proud of your effort. He made some great kits. I have one of his 1/16th ELCo's and it runs great. I am sure that you would get some nice comments over on PTboatForum as well.

Very nice! What size is she?