The noise was likely the valve lash adjusters. Hopefully they pump up and stay good. I'd probably suggest running synthetic oil from here on out, as long as you're not burning any. There was likely a good amount of oil residue in the exhaust, maybe some coolant as well. A good spin on the highway should clear that up.

When you take the front end apart, take a good look at the bushings in the front of the lower a-arms, since they seem to take a beating on these trucks. They can be pressed in/out with relative ease. The same cannot be said for the bushings for the rear of the lower a-arm, since they remain in the frame. Thankfully, they last a long time, and they are a complete B!tch to replace; I wouldn't bother.

The idler arm is the weak point in the steering. If you have any slop or wander, start there. I've replaced all my steering parts with ones with a lifetime warranty since I kind of beat on mine off-road.

My valve guide seals appeared on my front porch today, so thanks for ordering those for me. Do you still have the other 12 you got from me or did I space out on where I put them if you brought them back?

Good job getting through this job, man. It's not the easiest engine to do all that work to, so congratulations. It should run well for the next 60K miles until you just have to do the timing belt parts again. Hope those parts helped.

John B.