Moving batteries to front

[italianstal27]

Boat: 1976 18' holiday w/ 1973 Mercruiser 120.

We did our resto-mod and are a little stern heavy. I'd like to move the batteries under the dash, which would be a 12' run.

According to the manual, a 12' run requires 00 wire. Now i'm safety conscious like the rest of you, but 00 for 10 seconds of cranking sounds a little overkill!

Other threads sound like 1 or 2 awg for an engine this size might be alright, but I wasn't able to find a thread for older mercruisers. thanks!!

 

[Scott06]

Seems like very little cost difference between the smallest and largest cable in comparison to the whole project. From a quick check you need that size for a 350-400 cca battery to prevent voltage drop. So less about safety and more about starter performance especially if you end up with a weaker battery .