Sk8man

If you are not encountering water fleas braid is your best bet 10-30 lb. Any mono will have substantial stretch very little to none with braid and it has smaller diameter for less water resistance (e.g. Power Pro etc.).

sThis should be a lot simpler than people are making it. Respect your family, friends, neighbors, and fellow Americans by following the rules set forth. Nobody likes it. It is inconvenient and engenders the emotional reaction of "Nobody is going to tell me what to do or that I can't go fishing etc." This is a time to put our personal preferences and differences aside and pull together to help slow down this emerging train wreck. Putting self or others at risk is immature, selfish, and not in the spirit of being a good citizen at the very least. This is the most serious situation we have had in a long long time and in my lifetime I have never seen one this potentially disasterous.

When I had my 13 ft Whaler I had two 6 gal tanks up in the bow on either side with extended gas lines one to main and one to kicker. I felt I needed the separate gas tanks because I often fished out near the shipping lanes back then (a lot of strange looks form the tanker folks) Never a problem with them and it did keep the bow down during planing. Could free up room in the back for you.

It is a 14 ft boat and I think you are right about not having 2 heavy batteries in the back of it along with your gas tank. The Suzuki looks like a nice motor. Just another consideration: Is there anyone nearby that services them? Usually the small motors are pretty problem free but not always. By the way onlineoutboards were good to deal with when I bought my Tohatsu from them.

Ah I didn't see that Thanks Might want to have my glasses handier next time

I should think hanks advice should be the first and most straight forward thing to try before getting too far down the pike

Just a couple comments in the way of a non-expert opinion; 1. Electric trolling motors usually use deep cycle rather than starting batteries. Starting your motor takes a different draw on the battery than usage over time such as that of an electric trolling motor. For a small motor like a 15 HP it doesn't take as much juice to start as larger motors though but an electric trolling motor being on for some time and especially at the upper speed range could take it down a lot. 2. A couple advantages at least to having an electric start trolling motor a) They are usually easier than pulling the cord to get the motor started and are more convenient;especially in cold weather (given you have a fully charged battery) and most have an alternator with battery charging capability. Most have to be running pretty fast to significantly charge though. Most electric starts can also be started by pulling the cord as well if battery fails. If you are doing a lot of use on the electric trolling motor you may want to use a deep cycle battery or get a dual starting/deep cycle. You can always start the 15 HP by the cord if need be. At my dinosaur age I wouldn't even consider a manual start at this point and I think it is worth the extra money and very slight weight difference. A 15 HP should push that 14 ft boat pretty good

The docks aren't in at the south end (Woodville) just the small concrete structures. probably need hip boots

Yes the question would be are the docks in yet and I doubt it but haven't been there to check yet with the on-going situation (virus). North end laaunch has been open right along.