Hey guys, thanks for the input. That pretty much answers all my questions. I'll solder the diode right next to the electric motor just inside the housing so that I can keep the EMF "broadcasting" to a minimum -haha. And that explanation of how to determine the right MOSFET based on the graph is absolutely perfect! It was exactly what I needed. I was looking right at that graph but couldn't see the purpose until you spoon fed it to me. Thanks everyone!