Since there always seems to be a lot of interest on this forum in pt boats in general, and particularly PT 109, I have attached some photos of my conversion of the Italeri 1/35 PT 596 kit. My original intent had been to produce a generic, fresh from the factory, early 80' Elco boat, similar to the well known photo series of PT 117, in an early war dark grey over light grey paint scheme. In fact, I really wanted to avoid a PT 109 model for several reasons, mostly the scarcity of documentation for her exact appearance and fit during Jack Kennedy's tenure as her skipper, and it seems that PT 109 models have become almost a bit of a cliche. I'm not quite sure how it happened (probably a visit to the Kennedy Library in Boston two summers ago had a lot to do with it) but somehow the project turned into "another PT 109 model". The model is meant to represent her as she was on the famous night of August 1-2, 1943, prior to being rammed and cut in two by the Japanese destroyer Amagiri.
As most will know, built from the box the Italeri PT 596 kit depicts a very late production 80' Elco boat, while PT 109 was one of the earliest 80' boats built. Though the early and late boats share the same hull, running gear and basic layout above the deck line, there are actually a large amount of detail differences between the two. In fact, apart from the hull, propellers and shafts, rudders, and mufflers, the only parts from the kit that could be used unmodified were the smoke generator, 50 cal machine guns and mounts, and some deck fittings such as cleats and bitts. Everything else had to be either modified from the kit parts or built from scratch.
The major scratchbuilding effort was the four torpedo tubes, each of which contains over 200 individual pieces. Other scratchbuilt parts were the foredeck vents, depth charges and racks, early type mast, new engine room companionway and 20mm cannon base, sight and shoulder brackets. There are also modifications to the charthouse-bridge area, including relocating the 50 cal machine gun mount forward and modified windshield and spray shields and a new instrument panel. The day cabin and engine room hatch area were also reworked. Some of the kit parts, such as the ventilator cowls , were cast in resin as I needed more of them than the lit provided. I also used some of the Eduard PE set for PT 596 as well as their 1/35 50 cal ammo belts for the gun turrets. The 37mm anti tank gun is a 1/35 resin kit by Trakz.
While building a truly accurate replica of PT 109 is probably not possible due to the lack of documentation, I have tried to build a model that it is at least consistent with the few photos and descriptions of PT 109 that are available. The many non-documented details, such as exact colors, whether the mast was removed or folded back, or exactly how the 37 mm gun was lashed to the foredeck, represent my best interpretation/guess at how things might have looked. What I have not done is attempt any major weathering or depiction of any of the repairs and/or damage that PT 109 was known to have undergone. I'm just not very good at those techniques so I'm sure the model depicts the boat as much cleaner and less "beat up" than she actually was.
All told the build took about a year and a half, but work on several other projects accounted for some of that time. My references for the basic PT 103 boat have mainly been Al Ross' plans and manual for his Bluejacket kit, along with Allied Coastal Forces. I have also, in varying degrees, used information from most of the other well-known books and publications on the subject, as well as several pt related web sites and forums.