Buying advice : Would you trust a 50yr old polyester boat?

[jorxster]

Hi all,

Here in New Zealand the second-hand market for yachts is pretty steep. I'm looking for a quality blue water cruiser and that naturally means $$$.
I was talking to my surveyor who said that polyester resin built hulls are not water tight and eventually saturate with water, and that this applies to all yachts built before 1989, when it seems epoxy or vinyl-ester resins started to be in use. What are your thoughts on this?

Because occasionally I see a yacht that looks great, seems to be built well, but is quite old, (1975 in one case, a Bowman 57 built in the UK.). Almost 50 years old! Which I find astonishing, but everything about this boat seems to indicate quality. Wouldn't it be crazy to consider a 50yr old boat built before the times of epoxy resin, or is my surveyor overly cautious?

What's the worst that could happen? Do fiberglass hulls (of polyester resin) eventually just saturate with water, and is there nothing that can be done about that?

cheers, it's my first time seriously looking for a yacht.
Jordan