Rosecitythunderbirds.org
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Model of a PT Boat
Picture
Saturday, May 9, 2015 was an absolutely beautiful day for a top-down drive in our Thunderbirds. Nine Thunderbirds (seven sans top), plus 4 or 5 family cars along with about 20 club members toured PT658 on the Swan Island Lagoon. This boat was built too late in 1945 to see action during WWII but it had fallen into a state of terrible condition when the local group of former PT Boaters took possession of it and began the restoration. Currently it is the one and only PT Boat in the world that is operational. It will be seeing duty next month escorting the Rose Festival Fleet up the Columbia and Williamette Rivers to Portland.

PT 658 is afloat in a covered boat house so it was very difficult to get good photos of the boat. The photos below were about the best I could do.  

Club VP Bob Monroe made arrangements for our tour with his friend Bob Alton who is the PT Boat association President. As you can tell we were allowed to go any where on the boat. Roger Kelley is shown finishing up some paper work in one of the most important rooms on board. PT Boats were powered by three 2500 cubic inch Packard V12 engines. I don't remember the exact numbers but these things enormous amounts of fuel, about 500 gallons per hour at full speed. And those engines were designed for aviation fuel. So the association has to shop for fuel at airports and bring it to the boat.

We also toured LCI 713. LCI stands for Landing Craft Infantry. This boat did see action in the South Pacific during WW11. LCI 713 is not as far along in its restoration as PT 658 but touring it was still very informative.
Take close look at the "10 Man Balsa Life Raft" above. First the crew was about 12 to 15 and the only life raft was for 10. But look at the size of it. Maybe 2 could sit in it. But there was no bottom to the "raft". Instead it had a net that allowed the men to stand in it. Even then I think 6 would fill it; so if 10 got in it they would be in very close quarters.
  • Home
  • Our Story
    • News & Announcements
    • Cliff Noxon Service Award
  • Past Events
    • 2011 >
      • Allure of the Automobile
      • Great Oregon Steam Up
      • Carousel Trip
      • Veterans Dinner
      • Christmas Luncheon
    • 2012 >
      • 2012 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • Superior Glass
      • June 2012 Picnic
      • CTCI - Memphis
      • Gorge Tour
    • 2013 >
      • 2013 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • President's Day 2013
      • Guide Dog Graduation
      • SMS Auto Fabrics
      • July BBQ
      • August Rally
      • September Business Meeting
      • Oct Covered Bridge Tour
    • 2014 >
      • 2014 Kick-Off Luncheon
      • Feb Dessert Auction
      • 2014 40th Birthday party
      • May Tech Session
      • July Rally
      • August Progressive Dinner
    • 2015 >
      • 2015 Kick-Off Luncheo
      • March Tour of Ken Austin collection
      • April Air National Guard Tour
      • May PT Boat Tour
      • July Rally
      • August Gorge Tour
      • August CTCI Convention in Albuquerque
      • Sept Carlton Crush
      • Oct Tour & Lunch
    • 2016 >
      • Feb 2016 Valentine Party
      • March - World of Speed
      • May 2016 - John Lemmon's car collection
      • June 2016 - Timberline
      • July 2016 - Rally
      • September 2016
      • Oct 2016 - Model Railroad
      • NOV 2016
    • 2017 >
      • Jan 2017
      • Feb 2017
      • March 2017
      • April 2017
      • May 2017
      • June 2017
      • July 2017
      • Sept 2017
      • Oct 2017
    • 2018 >
      • Jan Kick-Off Dinner
      • Feb 2018
      • March 2018 Freedman Collection
      • April 2018 Tech Session
      • May 2018 WAAM & LeMay
      • June 2018
      • August 2018
      • October 2018
      • November 2018
      • December 2018
    • 2019 >
      • January 2019
      • Feb 2019 Albany Carousel
      • March 2019 Ken Austin Tour
      • April 2019
      • May 2019
      • June 2019
      • July 2019
      • August 2019
      • Oct 2019
      • Nov 2019
      • December 2019
    • 2020 >
      • Jan 2020
      • Feb 2020
      • June 2020
    • 2021 >
      • June 2021
      • July 2021
      • August 2021
      • Sept 2021
      • Oct 2021
      • December 2021 Christmas Luncheon
    • 2022 >
      • Jan 2022
      • Feb 2022
      • March 2022
      • April 2022
      • May 2022
      • Aug 2022
      • Sept 2022
      • Oct 2022
      • Dec 2022
    • 2023 >
      • Jan 2023
  • Up Coming Events
  • Photos
    • As seen at a local Cruise-In
    • Prisoners of Time
    • 1962 Budd XT Bird
    • 1961 Buick Flamingo
    • 1916 Gas Prices
    • Ford History Video
    • Consumer Reports
    • Fords of the 1950's
    • 57-58 Thunderbird
    • Driving to Wichita 2006
    • Circus Party at 2008 International Convention
    • Working on members' cars
    • 1957 Rebuild
  • Contact Us
  • Join Us
  • Tech Tips
    • Preparing for winter storage
    • Cooling System >
      • Anti Freeze information
      • Plugged Overflow Tube
      • Radiator Caps
      • Temp Sender Bushing Removal
      • Cooling Trick
    • Electrical >
      • Battery Safety
      • Ground Strap
      • Safety Circuit Breaker
      • Turn Signal Switch
      • Fuel & Temp Gauge Safety
      • Electrical Leaks
    • Slide Shows >
      • Engine Install slide show
      • Body Removal Slide Show
      • Another Engine Install
    • Cleaning Tips
    • Valve Adjust tip
    • 1955 Shop Manual error
    • Turning Rotors
    • Welding around Brake Cleaner
    • Paint on Chrome
    • Wind Wing Glass Removal
    • Automatic Transmission Removal
    • Arm Protection
    • Changing the Fuel Pump
    • Rusty Lug Nuts
    • Local Parts availability
  • Club Store
  • Bird Watcher
    • 2014 >
      • Sept 2014
  • Cruise-Ins
  • Auto Service Recommendations