hi Honger,
thanks so much for taking the time to read the thread and glad you found it worthwhile.
The truck runs extremely well and I drive it daily - for work, which is exactly what I intended from the get-go. It carries 2000 pounds, starts and stops perfectly.
It hasn't been all smooth sailing. The body filler I used on the hood and doors didn't bond properly to the primer and has cracked. The east coast is a rust-inducing environment and the truck body continues to rust. All the attention I gave the seams when down to bare metal wasn't enough and the rust started back up from the seams. I'm going to look to get a new body in the next 5 years probably.
I still haven't got the intermittent wipers to work, though I also haven't given it a lot of attention.
The Optima battery was drained down a couple of times and went through a very cold winter and crapped out. I replaced it with a heavy duty normal style battery from Napa and things have been fine since.
Last year the oil seal on the near-new pto drive box failed (from a lack of use
), and while driving oil from the transfer case got pumped out and the case went dry while I was going 65 mp/h - case destroyed. I was able to get a replacement without hassle though and rebuilt it in my driveway.
The exhaust, fabricated from mandrel bent section from Napa, has been a total disaster, failing 5 times in 4 years. It is currently held together with baling wire and spit, and I'm strongly considering getting a stainless exhaust fabricated.
Sometimes I'm thrilled with the truck, and sometimes I wonder why I spent all of my money and time, all the stress. We keep on trucking though.
~Chris
