I'm like you, this is the first vehicle I have ever attempted and I am very much a novice. The stud welder and puller I have is from Harbor Freight but I know Eastwood and others sell these. The HF set doesn't work all that good. I don't mind the mechanical work on these since everything is fairly straightforward. The body is something else, I have never done any body work, for me the toughest part of body work has been painting. I can really appreciate the professional body guys and what they do. I have been working on this thing off and on for several years, am wondering if I will ever get done. I have some pictures posted in the DIY section of the welcome page if you are interested. I can say it's important to take pictures and take good notes while you are taking things apart. I made the mistake of not doing this right at first. I found that I couldn't always remember how to get something back together. I was lucky that I have several other old pickups and one parts 2 ton to look at.
I don't know how much work your truck needs or how far you want to go on the restoration but if I can be of any help let me know. The good thing is the cabs on the bigger trucks are all the same as the pickups so parts are generally not a problem. However the gas tanks, radiators, and many of the suspension parts for the 2 tons are bigger and are not reproduced. Same with fenders, grilles, hoods, and apparently the hood emblem as we both know. I don't know much about restoring tractors, I had an old IHC M built in 41. It needed a bunch of work, ended up trading it for some rifles. Bought a new small John Deere instead. Anyway good luck.
Steve
