My how this thread has run over the past few months. I had to marathon it just to get into the last 20 pages. Great to see interest in these.
Big thanks to General Hood for the electrical diagrams. Should be nice, though the rat damage has made me mildly familiar with the behind-the-gauges wiring.
I noticed there was a post from FLU farm on fuel tank corrosion, particularly on the strainer. As mentioned by others, there is such a random mix of metals in the tank and strainer that it is hard to say exactly what causes it all. That said, diesel fuel could become very acidic if it were contaminated enough. There is no doubt our machines have sat for some time. Moisture alone would cause corrosion, but the level seen on the copper-based fuel tank strainer is pretty amazing. Would love to hear a real chemist comment on what diesel mixture could produce such a foul deposit.
To get rid of the corrosion on your strainer, go buy a big bottle of white vinegar at the grocery store, cut the top off, dip the strainer, let it sit for a couple hours. I've done this for the strainer and the fuel cap and it works great. Acetic acid dissolves copper corrosion and leaves copper surfaces perfectly clean. Even a 5% concentration like one buys at the store works well.
It'll make a color of copper you may have not seen before. "Pure" so to speak, at least for a few minutes.
I can't think of too much to add except that the locker cylinder advice has been great. Have definitely experienced most of the troubles mentioned here! If one has access to an excavator or various lifts, pulling the entire cab off isn't much more involved and doesn't require brackets.
I've been fighting an intermediate-shift problem lately and hope it will be solved without cab removal. The unit is the best or second-best I've seen out of 8 I've had ('09 rebuild), and after (even some before) my go-over all electrical and mechanical works except for the split-shift. Won't go into lower gears. I've removed some valves (a fight without taking cab off, but well worth it) and they look fine inside. I crack a line on the actual air shift assembly and can hear air, so hopefully it's not in the transmission. I figure no power to the solenoid right on top of transmission or the actual mechanism is seized... or maybe the overflow valve (7.3) isn't letting enough air into the auxiliary functions, but as said, 4x4 and diff locks work fine. Any thoughts welcome.
I might have some of the odd parts you guys need, so let me know if looking for a SEE-based part (know Scott @ EI has most MB stuff and has been great). I have a couple of parts units that have been a great help.
Thanks for all the input. I should've been more into this thread a few months ago!