SGV CP VIT Sea-going Vessels Clyde Puffer SS Vital Spark
The diminutive Clyde Puffers, originally so-called because of the sound made by their simple steam engines,
were a mainstay of Scottish cargo transport from the early nineteenth century until the late twentieth,
first on the Firth of Clyde and the Forth-Clyde canal, and then increasingly also out to the Scottish islands,
where their ability to be beached at low tide and refloated on the next high meant that they could serve communities
even where there was no harbour or pier.
Puffers were immortalised by Neil Munro's stories of skipper Para Handy and his 'Vital Spark', which first appeared in a
Glasgow newspaper in the 1900s before being collected in book form in the 1930s, and given a wider audience still by three
separate UK TV outings;a single series in 1959, followed by another three between 1965 and 1974, and a final set in 1994.
There never was an actual 'Vital Spark' in real life during their heyday, though several puffers have since borne the name for
filming purposes, and one preserved VIC now carries it.
Puffers proved so invaluable as supply vessels during the First World War that the basic design of the last true examples,
built in 1939, was used as the pattern for a series of purpose-built carriers (VICs - Victualling Inshore Craft) in the Second,
later giving way to larger variations, many of which saw commercial service after the end of the war, some continuing the
Scottish tradition, others going further afield.
The puffers' usefulness was severely eroded by the introduction of subsidised Roll-on, Roll-off ferries to the islands from the 1970s
onwards: the removal of their own subsidies in the 1990s was to prove the final nail in their coffin.
Fortunately, there are a handful preserved in Scotland and England, though virtually all the survivors date from the war years.
This is based on VIC 27, one of the 1939-pattern smaller craft, which was once based at Rosyth on the Forth, then
later at Oban as a youth training vessel named 'Auld Reekie' and later still stood in for 'Vital Spark' in the 1994 series.
Following years of neglect, she's now in caring hands again and is currently undergoing major restoration
at Crinan.
When they were fully laden, puffers sat quite low in the water - if the load was lighter, or there was none at all,
the weight of the engine meant that the stern stayed low, whilst the bow was rather higher: the model reflects this, though,
thanks to a helpful suggestion from Itareus, I've enabled on the roll function so that you can have some control over the angle - it's like doing
a rotation, only with the shift key depressed: I've not allowed too much leeway, so you'll not be able to emulate 'Titanic',
though it's a sad fact that far too many puffers and gallant crewmen were lost in the treacherous seas off Scotland's West Coast
Тип: scenery