Thanks for all the advice. I found some reasonable priced wiring harness' on the Jim Carter website. Not going to go with the cloth type since this won't be a show truck but a work truck. I can't justify the extra $400 dollars. I figure we will strip out all the fire accessories out first then replace existing harness with the new one. I will go with a alternator and 12volt conversion at this time for "reliability".
I started to look for a donor truck with a hydraulic lift. The prices are crazy high right now and hoping to find one reasonable. Or hope to find an old bed and hoist that was pulled off. Plenty of old grain trucks in southeast Michigan. If not There are some reasonable price electric lift kits. They are $2-$3k for a complete setup. Pricey but I won't have to deal with leaking cylinders or lines. So, the search begin.
Thanks
MFW
