mark thompson,The investment in lithium is a personal preference rather than a cost upgrade we feel. The lithium batteries on the cranking battery dont work as well from our experience long term, for hard users. They need to do some homework there. Here on cranking we opt for AGM until something different comes along. Trolling motors do seem to work fine though we would only invest the money in new boats as everyone generally upgrades in time. This maximizes your ownership and feasability of the set up.We still feel that good lead acid batteries on the trolling moor last one for most users on initial cost and return models.