any 6.5 gurus here?

[Tiger Joe]

I just picked up my first 6.5 diesel last week.

1992 3500hd 6.5 turbo with nv4500. truck is a tiltbed car hauler.

I'm not new to diesel (drive a duramax everyday) just the 6.5

from what I read, the early ones (92-93) are the better ones to have, because that's before electronics?

truck runs good, only has 132k miles on it and zero rust.

Here are my 2 issues- hard cold start and oil leaks.

first the oil leaks- I see oil on both driver and pass side of the motor. the only drop that is hitting the ground is coming off the slave cylinder. i know the oil cooler lines need replaced, but not sure what is leaking on pass side? I see an oily film on the tube between the turbo and intake, maybe need to replace the CDR? neither leak is massive, but oil leaks are a pet peeve of mine and I have to fix them

hard start- previous owner told me truck had always been hard to start first start of the day. he bypassed the glow plug controller with a button so he could them in longer. if i get in the truck hold plugs on for 10-15 seconds and crank, truck will fire and sorta chug/run rough for 10-15 seconds, then smooth out. when chugging i get some white-bluish smoke out exhaust, well actually a lot of smoke.
I'm wondering if fuel pump is weak, since tank is in rear it has a long way to pull fuel on the tiltbed truck. or maybe glow plugs need replaced?