[cdavisdb]

Like the man said, they aren't for everyone. Keeping them in salt water is poison, especially down south where the boat stays in the water. They are more maintenance and you have to do it or the system gets unreliable and REALLY expensive. If you keep up with it, expense is ok, but still not cheap. I like to say I throw money at mine and it takes care of me just fine.

The advantages of I/0s are you can do much of the work yourself and they will almost always warn you well before they crap out entirely, unlike outboards (you have to listen and have good guages). Further most things can be fixed on the water, if you have the spares. In your case, the center of gravity issue is important because of your relatively high center and deep V. Also, the duoprop you will LOVE. Darn near bullet proof and fabulous torque. You can slow way down in snotty conditions. My old Seabird (very similar hull to yours) would plane solidly just above 11 knots, no jumping on and off a plane no matter how rough. Fuel economy will almost certainly be better than anything else you could have.

My opinion: If its not to be kept in the water, keep it, for sure.

Connor