So, I want to preface that I bought it off Facebook Marketplace. I took it out on the water with the owner, and there were no leaks, the steering worked, the Engine sounded good with the cowling on, and there were no noticeable issues. I bought it for 4500, and I took it to a mechanic to truly inspect what I had purchased, so he told me that the biggest issue he saw was two missing intake manifold bolts on the outside, which eventually blew the intake gasket. However, he noted that the compression on the engine was near spec 126 - 130, which would be an indication that the motor was rebuilt. So I'm doing some research and I say to him, based on the fact that whoever may have rebuilt this engine was drunker than a skunk or didn't know what they were doing at all, I mean, if they forgot intake manifold bolts, what else could they have forgotten during the engine rebuild? So I tell the mechanic, "What if they rebuilt the engine in order to get to a point where the quality of the engine wouldn't be questioned, so they could sell it." in that moment he said "Bingo" but then he told me there is no way to really check if someone did that. So far, I have spent a grand in total repairs, and for the most part, he told me that the engine itself runs excellently. There are a lot of very smart individuals on this forum and I'd like to hear what ya'll think of the situation at hand.
