Bear with me cuz I been drinking. 

Sooo 20010 me n the family head to the Autumn SCJB shindig at Laughlin ? Can't zactly remember.  Anyway we get 30 minutes out and the front of the trailer breaks off.  AAA can't handle the tow after 3 hrs I call a mobile welder.  It is now night, he finishes and I get ready to continue on but now I got no trailer lights.  Tail between legs we go home.  I'm out $200 plus the money for the room at the river.  Fast forward to last summer, we head down to McIntyre for the first trip of the summer.  15 minutes into it I develop a rod knock which is substantial by the time we bet back up river to the campground.  No biggie thinks I cuz I got this Spectra as backup that I really want to get use.  I bought it 3 yrs ago and have yet to use it.
I got it for a bargain price of $1600 in Fresno.  Boat is 7 outa 10.  Original everything except motor.  Boat good trailer NOT.  Fingers crossed all the way home runners held on with duct tape wires running everywhere but lights work. had to buy safety chain before we can evern leave but hey the price was right and it ran pretty decent in the driveway.  dude said pump was bad but I think I fixed that in his driveway when I pulled a 12 pack wrapper out of it.
Last summer I paid someone who will go unnamed here a grand to fix up the trailer and spent another couple hundred on new tires.  I go to pick it up and the lead is too short to reach my truck?  DOH !  Get that fixed and it is off to a motor guy a friend recommend to have wiring straightend out cuz its a rats nest.  New dizzy cuz the other one is rusted internally but he doesn't buy marine! Basically for 600 I got really nice battery cables and a good working dizzy.  Boat still runs a little ragged but it has and Ebrock carb and he doesn't have any jets.  Whatever.
Put it in the water and it runs so crappy one lap around tiny little lake Perris and I am worried I will even get bvack to ramp.  then I notice one of my brand new runners is missing FLOATED A FUCKING WAY and it is now dark.  Next day under trailer I find none of the new through bolts were tightened up at all!!!!!  Who installs runners and doesn't tighten them up as you go along???
Now I pull carb and the intake is full of rust.  I don't give it much thought and take it to Crewchief's guy who seems to know whats up.  Thinking I am gonna get away with major tuneup he calls me back and says bad compression in 1 hole and wants to do complete valve job. OK I guess.  Now we pull heads and find scored hole in #8 and water pitting in #2.  $450 to find out my motor sux but at least here I got what I paid for it just sux that it is more bad news.
tonight I pulll motor out and drop off at machine shop.  Oh lookie here he says.  Back of block has a huge weld that looks like toothpaste.  so now I am looking at buying another block in addition to the rotating assembly.   
I thought I would be able to afford to build the short block this month and do the heads in a month or so when I have more cash but who the Fk nows?
Oh yeah a few months back I bought another 455 for the knoking boat but it really needs a new subfloor as there is no good wood left to bolt the drivers seat pedastal to and I (it) keeps falling backwards and spilling my beers.  Oh and the diverter quit working too last time out.  Oh and the city tagged me again reminding me it is illegal in this city to park a boat in your own driveway !!!!
OK I tink I'm done now but no I don't feel any better even in the least.  This 460 better haul the mail or I'm gonna blow all this crap all to hell
                etc. and so on and so on oand so on .... 

Sorry to hear you're having so many problems with the Spectra.  If I can help out, let me know. 

I have been drinking too!

But really, what's a motor?

I've never had to build a motor for anything, I have not had any problems beyond knock sensors. Spark plugs and basic stuff... I don't doubt I will have engine trouble one day or need to rebuild/buy a new crate motor...  Once you get it runnin right, if you use it often, don't she stay right?

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk

On my second motor, pumps been rebuilt and tore down a couple times, hit sand bar, floated onto rocks, boats been hit several times by other boaters both in water and on trailer, have redone my interior and getting ready to change it again, have had parts/gas stolen out of it...ect. This is my first jet boat and its a spectra 18. I dont plan on selling it or getting out of boating...Cant beat krusn on the water.

When I reached the point of wanting to go boating rather than go working on the boat, I sold my jet and bought a wacker.  Best thing I ever did.  Lost about 20 mph but not having to fix shit every weekend makes up for it.

As far as all the work you've paid for that has turned out bad....this is why I've invested hundreds of thousands of dollars over my life to buy the tools and acquire the knowledge to do it myself.....right.....the first time.  Sometimes it's the only way.  That's not to say there aren't people out there that do superb work...there are.    Most of them won't be found hanging out on a forum though because they're too busy doing all the work they have lined up.

That kinda shit makes me wanna order a new crate motor and be done.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk

Well glasscutter I think im your huckleberry. Although im only 22 I have worked for a property management company as a maintenance man for 5 years now, so im good enough for them to keep me and im sure i can do it right for half the cost if not less and if its got an engine I can work on it. Just don't ask me to tune a carb, haven't figured that out but I can rebuild em no problem. And seeing that im in Moreno valley off nason im a hop skip and a drive through san timatao canyon and im in redlands. I can Always make time to help out.

Fat fingered from the phone-  Corey

You still want a boat.

Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk

Yeah, soooo.....
sounds to me like all this could be handled over a few cases of Hanger .....

-beerjet-