Yes, it is a bumper. It is there to reduce damage caused by collisions. Class rules specify the size and material that the bumper is to be made of. The cork is pretty old and is OK for vintage racing but, if someone got picky, most classes these days specify that the bumper be made of some elastomer material. I have seen champagne corks and squash balls used on some old boats with sharply pointed bows.

Excuse my ignorance.... I have a [probably silly] question: Which is the purpose of the piece of material that seems cork attached to the stem? Some sort of bumper?

Managed to finally to identify the Black Marblehead, it is a Chris Dicks ‘Deception’ design.

Apart from a good clean the only thing that needs doing it to replace the removed section of the keel, apparently the previous owner cut the keel stub down so he could sail it on a shallow lake. Luckily the boat came with the removed section so I’ll reattach using carbon fibre rods and epoxy.

Sounds like a really good holiday

Yes I recognize a Marblehead and you have a beautiful one! Sailing it versus a DF65 is a dream come true of many a rc skipper.

luckyduck, I can’t pass a charity shop without popping in. Always have a rummage, as does my wife. It is a numbers thing, we reckon 1 in 20 to strike lucky - the down side is we have 2000+ books and more pond yachts than I’ll ever use.

As for FB Marketplace I have several search terms and leave the FB algorithm to do its thing.

I have noticed that pond yachts and r/c boats that need work or restoration don’t sell on FB. The Marblehead was listed for £180 - probably a bit ambitious but a fair price if no work was needed, I bought it for £50 as no one was interested. It just needs some cosmetic work but could be sailed now.

How do you do it? Every time I search either ebay or charity I get nought. Please share your tricks and skill.