In addition to mast fittings and keel plate, Ranger's stem, her rudder and stern frame are arc welded for greatest strength per pound of weight. The stem was fabricated of three plates 48 feet long, 4% inches wide and % inch thick. Use .of electric welding in construction made it possible to fabricate the stem to conform exactly to the lines of the hull. In previous boats, the stem had been cast to an exact pattern. With electric welding it was not only possible to obtain perfect form but the structure was Ranger's rudder, four feet wide, was built up of arc-welded steel considerably lighter yet much greater in strength.
Ranger's rudder, another part of her structure which must resist extreme stresses, is entirely weld fabricated. It is 13 feet in length and four feet maximum width. It consists of various steel shapes and plate cut to conform to designed size and form and then fused into a single unit by the electric arc.
Ranger's stern frame was fabricated entirely from flat steel plates arc welded together.