I must have been lucky, as all I had to do was remove the screw and the caps slid right off with no effort. I got lucky on my truck because it was listed as a "non-runner" and it had a flat on one of the tires, and one of the side rear windows was broken out, so the bidding was low on it. I took a chance on it and feel like I got a steal on it.
I picked it up for $5,400. I put two batteries in it, and it fired right up. The CTIS filled up the tire automatically and I was ready to roll. I had to put a rear side window it and I had to rebuild the hydraulic pump and manifold. A few of the knobs were missing on the heater controls and it needed a new fan switch for the heater. Other than that, it runs and drives great. The flat has a very slow leak on it, so I do need to fix that at some point, but it holds for a couple of weeks before going flat, so as long as I crank it every few days, that's not really an issue. The truck appears to be in good condition based on some of the other stories I am hearing. Oh, and it had no speedometer, but I picked up one of the Chinese GPS units for cheap and it works well.
I also picked up some of the desert tan paint at Home Depot and while it doesn't match my faded paint, I think it is the correct original color and I plan to spray the full machine next. I've been busy with some other projects, so I haven't spent much time on it lately, but I enjoy driving it and tinkering with it when I have time. I've been offered triple what I paid for it, but I don't want to part with it. lol
Does anyone know what the going rate on one of these in good working order is worth on the open market?