My plan for today was to try to seal up the leaking diff by pulling off the rear cover and resealing it, and maybe adding some sealant to the front side after cleaning everything up. When I crawled under the truck I was surprised to see a gear lube mess everywhere. Looks like it's been leaking possibly from the pinion seal and slinging everywhere. It's all over the exhaust. I'm not a rocket scientist but that doesn't seem safe. Especially since oil is dripping from the varnished wood bed. I'm seeing red flags for driving this thing until that's fixed. Unfortunately, I think that's beyond my limited capabilities.
I did get to the seat belts. They're bolted to a sheet metal floor. Hmmm. Not sure if that's a genius idea either. I did use the giant grade 8 washers under the floor, and If there was a situation that pulled those through the floor I've got serious problems anyway. I did manage to drop one of the screws that holds the seat back in place behind the seat. Spent way to long trying to retrieve it with long magnet tools and other doodads to no avail. Ugh, always something. Since this truck isn't safe at the moment I think I'll take my motorcycle for a long overdue ride.
Next thing I think will be adjusting the steering box as the shop manual describes. Can't get to it today though.
