A friend sent me the link to the video above. Thought you might enjoy it. A good visual tour, but there seem to be errors in the narration–I don’t think it ever served in the Navy, although it did go to war. Also, I don’t think it was ever equipped a 3″/50. During WWII they were armed with the 3″/23 and after WWII with a single Bofors 40mm.

Good to see this former cutter, the former USCGC Active, being well taken care of. It is owned by the Vietnam war flight museum in Houston, Texas.

Another of the class, the former USCGC McLane, is at the USS Silversides Submarine Museum (formerly the Great Lakes Naval Memorial and Museum), 1346 Bluff Street, Muskegon, MI 49441.

These were members of the Active class. 35 of them were built in a big hurry to enforce Prohibition, with all 35 commissioned between 30 November 1926 and May 1927.

85 years separate them, but they make an interesting comparison with the Webber class (Sentinel) Fast Response Cutters. In 1966, the remaining Active class were redesignated WMECs, but originally, like the new cutters, they were designed WPCs.

The old cutter is smaller (232 tons vs 353) but for much of its life, it had a larger crew, up to at least 38, though I seem to remember 44. I went aboard one as a cadet and the crowded berthing area, well forward, made a lasting impression. I could imagine what it would have been like pitching in a heavy sea.

While the new cutters have 11,600 HP for 28 knots, the old cutters started life with only 600HP for 10 knots and were upgraded to 1200 HP for a blistering 13. Range really wasn’t that different, with the old cutters good for 2,500 miles at 13 knots after the upgrade–2,500 miles at 14 knots for the newer cutters. The old cutters were probably more comfortable sustaining an eight knot cruise speed.

There is definitely a huge difference in ship’s boats and boat handling as you may note in the video.

Having seen how much wiring goes into the new cutters, they come from totally different worlds.

Thanks to Lee for bringing this to my attention.