Subchaser Archives Notes, April 2018: Lines drawings and a visit to SC 86
As we move through the hundred-years-after period, various sources are posting "100 years ago" clips, I among them—except that I plan to continue posting these snippets after November 11, to highlight some of the chaser activities just after the war. The most interesting of the post-war events involving subchasers is the Northern Russia Expedition, in which a unit of chasers visited the White Sea to assist in the evacuation of U.S. troops.
There are already a few "100 years ago" posts on chasers, on this page (and I've been posting them on Facebook). At present (well, 100 years prior to the present), chasers are making the overseas journey, and are stopped in Bermuda. The longer leg of the journey comes soon.
Submitted recently:
Submitted by Jim Hamilton is a "slice of life" story of a subchaser hunt in WWI. This is from the diary of Stoddard Lane, a World War I ambulance driver. His brother, Homer Lane, was the CO of SC 86. In addition to including an note on using the trailing wire, it's a nice story of a visitor coming on board and being given the chance to stand at the helm and steer the boat, which wasn't an easy task.
The trailing wire, described here, is one of the more peculiar early ASW devices. (Note that one of the "100 Years Ago" posts is about this device.)
Also added is a set of cleaned-up lines drawings, submitted by Howard Serlick. These should be of interest to anyone working on a model. Large versions of the images are available for download.
—Todd Woofenden, editor