[coveboy]

Appreciate all the replies and welcomes! I drove the truck around my property for a couple hours, gave it a little hell to see how she'd hold up and truck did great. 4x4 functions properly and the ride isn't quite as rough as I was expecting it to be considering how bad the suspension looks. However, the transmission did spit some fluid back up the dipstick. I'm unsure what caused this; thinking either the breather is clogged or filter shot. I'm going to dig into this this weekend, but the truck was shifting fine through all the gears with no other adverse affects. Anything else I should check?

As far as the welded rear diff goes, I have a Land Cruiser to daily drive so this truck will see mostly dirt and very few paved roads. This will be my last modification on my list, so the truck will get some good use before I take it to that level and possibly destroy the differential. If I find out that after a few times off the road the truck handles well without the welded rear, I'll probably leave it open until I can afford a better alternative. Once it's shot out the truck will go back under the knife for whatever I can scavenge from pick n pull or craigslist, hopefully a 14 bolt and dana 60 for the front and a 205 transfer case.

With regards to the rear bumper, I haven't found any affordable or appealing aftermarket rear bumpers, and the stock options hang too low/far out without offering much protection and zero recovery points. With such a big truck I'm sure I'll be draggin ass on the trails, so I'd like something that won't get completely mangled or ruin departure angles.

I don't mean to sound like a jerk, I genuinely do appreciate the concern and do not wish to cause harm to anyone, but the truck won't see much pavement time and I have never heard of nor can find any laws that I would be breaking with a home-brew rear bumper. I was just thinking a basic ~6" or so tube that spans from corner to corner with a couple points for D-rings to attach to. The tailgate it shot out, so I don't mind bolting the license plate straight to it. From what I have read, DOT laws on bumpers only apply to passenger cars-not pick ups, SUVs, and vans, and the truck won't be tall enough for regulations on distance between driving surface and impact area to apply. Therefore, there would be no grounds for a lawsuit against me and any claims would not hold merit. I see tons of trucks and Heeps around here with tube work bumpers and the police never seem to bat an eye