I will be adding 2 batteries for my trolling motor on the bay boat. I'm looking or opinions on batteries offered my O'Reilly Auto Parts as I get a family discount. They offer optima's, their lead aci super start series and the super start agm's. Are there any opinions on any of these batteries or what should I be looking at in a "trolling" battery

You need to be looking for a true deep cycle. A "dual purpose" or marine staring battery is not going to hold up to the repeated deep discharges of a trolling motor.

I use a gas mat battery from CarQuest.

It works great.

I run the blue top optimas, they have always worked great for me.

Just go to wal-mart and get the everstarts. My last set lasted 6 years and always performed flawlessly, and they're way cheaper than anything else. I think I paid $75 apiece for the two I bought a few months ago.

Just replaced 3 Everstarts with group 29 Everstarts. The old batteries I removed were 6 years old and came with the boat when I purchased it 2 years ago. I figured that replacing 3 batteries for the same cost as some of the single battery cost made sense. A someone else mentioned in a recent thread, no matter what lake you are fishing in Texas there is probably a Wally World within 35 miles should you need warranty replacement.

I just bought two Optima Blue Tops from O'Reiley's. I paid $ 229 each with our company discount. Last week I was at Academy and they had the Blue Tops for I think $ 189. They are great batteries and that was a great price.

Let your needs be your guide. Lesser batteries will work for lighter boats and lighter demands. Bigger boats and bigger requirements are best served by better batteries. That being said, in my experience, cheaper batteries are just that.

If your discount is substantial, get the blue top Optimas from O'Reillys. I am running them and think that they are very good. They have been in the boat for about 70 trips.

I have been using Optima Blue Tops for the last 4 years. Had to replace one under the warranty. While fishing the Top Six Federation tournament at Amistad in March, I had the cranking battery go bad and had to make a trip to Wal Mart at 4 am to purchase a battery. It was an Everstart. I am taking it back today because it was dead by 1:00 yesterday. It lasted 3 months. I'll gladly pay the extra money for the confidence of getting back to the ramp.

Walmart Everstart Maxx. 24 month replacement warranty. Walmarts are everywhere you go for replacements. This is what lead me to the 29 series they have.

Size matters. Always get the largest group size battery that will fit your battery compartment. Larger batteries last longer on,and off,the water. You pick the brand and type. I want minimal battery maintainence,so I run AGM batteries.

Optima marine AGM deep cycle

Can you use a normal car battery charger for deep cycle batteries or do you need a certain type of charger?

Sure you can