[DesertCat]

Crazy about that green! Been thinking about bringing my truck back to stock (6 cylinder) and your engine is hitting the right buttons with me. Excellent choice!

You asked about the rust on the manifolds... that will never really go away without sandblasting and an exorcist, BUT it usually doesn't creep through paint. I have painted manifolds like that and they looked great for a couple years, longer if you hit it first with some metal prep (muriatic acid based product).

Doing a build on a tight budget is tough, you need to set priorities and stick with the basics until your budget picture improves. You sound like your on the right track with that - get it running, take care of the small stuff that needs rework before modifying anything. Clean, paint, clean, paint, clean....

You can vastly improve your truck and make it a pleasure to work on by getting everything cleaned and spray bombed. A lot of work but dirt cheap and it pays off big time.

You may even find that you like it better as a fresh stocker then something modified.

Looks like a great beginning no matter which way you go with it!