Ever lasting?

If we get one single question from our prospective boat kit buyers and builders,it normally starts as a question such as : "So how long will one of your Wood/Epoxy kits last?" the standard reply to which always starts as "well at least one hundred years but a thousand may be possible?" This normally brings on a sense of serene calm in the customer,as he or she can imagine sailing away forever into the distance on the boat they built themself. Maybe not but I normally then show them a picture of a warship called 'HMS Victory',ok its in a permanent dry dock in the Portsmouth Naval Dockyards, England but it is 220 years old or so and lets face it they had no epoxies back when Admiral Horatio Nelson was out fighting on the high seas.I wonder if we can do a kit for a boat like that,any takers?

The discusion may then drift off to talk about masts,wooden ones,this bit gets easy,you know the wood masts are made from things called trees I say,have you seen them? they can be found all over the place growing to very great hights and with no bits of stainless wire holding them up either! One such discussion saw my looking find out how large and old some of the worlds largest trees are,thats the Californian Redwoods,known to size up to over 300 feet or so and grow to and age of over 2500 years and more,no bits of stainless wire holding them up either.So how long will a Wood/Epoxy boat last,the truth is if we build one any near as good as its possible,we may never live long enough to find out,family airloom any one?

Roy