I have a 12' pelican jon boat and am thinking of getting a newer used 5,6,7,or 8  hp motor over the winter. Right now I have a old 60s evinrude 3hp and want to upgrade. I have read all the  pros and cons to both but dont have any experience with the newer 2 and 4 stokes. Are the 4 strokes much less powerfull, are they that much heavier, more parts to break, more expensive to fix?? I was leaning towards a 4 stroke cause they run cleaner and quiter and dont have to mix gas. But I am starting to think a newer 2stroke may be the way to go??

I have a pelican jon boat, and am wanting to put a gas motor on it too.  The guy I bought it from said he bought it for the 2 stroke that was on it because the EPA changed their regulations and they aren't made any more.  And yes 4 strokes are heavier which is very important for our boats because they aren't rated for a lot of weight.  You can still buy a 2 stroke, but from what I have seen on craigslist.com they are hard to come by.  I am looking for a 5hp for mine, I hope it will push me and friend along at a decent speed?

New 2 strokes are just as quite as most 4 strokes, run just as clean, weigh considerable less, have no required maintenance, and mixing oil aint rocket science.

Why are you going new?  Your little 3 was one of the ABSOLUTE best outboards ever made.  Although they larger ones aren't quite like the 3s and 4s of that era, the 6s and 8s made by Johnson or Evinrude (OMC) are undoubtably better than the modern couterpart.  The small twin cylinder Johnnyrudes aren't gonna die in our lifetimes, but many of the brand new ones will.

The guy I bought it from said he bought it for the 2 stroke that was on it because the EPA changed their regulations and they aren't made any more.

FYI the EPA only tightened pollution restrictions on the motors.  They did not mandate 4 strokes only.  Many two stroke manufacturers have stepped to the plate and made clean and quiet 2 strokes.  2 strokes will continue to be produced.

Pro and cons, they both have them. 4 stroke engine is more fuel efficient and the overall wear on that engine will be less, you'll wear a 2 stroke out alot faster than a 4 stroke. I dont know the whole logic behind that just know it from experience and from other people I know thats had both. 2 stroke is gonna get there alot quicker, much faster than the 4 stroke.

If your looking for a small used outboard check out this site. they even have an article on 2 stroke VS 4 stroke

http://www.smalloutboards.com/

The guy I bought it from said he bought it for the 2 stroke that was on it because the EPA changed their regulations and they aren't made any more.

ummm...not so. People keep pointing at the EPA here and Yamaha is a big one for telling folks just this...

( they told me this and I called around and emailed the EPA and coast gaurd)

The EPA tightened regualtions but did not outlaw 2 strokes. Making two strokes illegal is not even in their powers. All they can do is set emmission and release standards...Any two stroke that meets their requirements is perfectly fine. Two strokes are hard to find in small motors because the manufacturers choose not to rework their technology on the two's to make them meet requirements. ( which is not the same thing as being illegal...it IS the same thing as them screwing you out of a two stroke option and blaming someone else however)

They went to four strokes because it is cheaper to build the fours than rework the technology of the two stokes on the small motors...that do not have alot of profit margin in them. If two's were illegal then they would not still be selling that big motors in two strokes.

The devil is in the details...

I don't know where you will be using it at, but I believe that some lakes around my neck of the woods have banned 2 strokes altogether.  Lake Tahoe and Donner Lake I believe are two.