There is a thread in the 67-72 forums that talks about shortening the bed.
The jist of it sais too much money and effort. I guess frame needs to be shortened in front of and behind rear axle and that the shortening of the bed. I think the guy was trying to go from a stock 8' to stock 6' and thats why not worth it. If you were doing like a quad cab with 4' bed than it might be worth doing.
Thanks for the info. The to-do list is still pretty long and intimidating even with that scratched off it.
Hope your final leg home goes well.
I'll say this about the truck - it's a lot more reliable than Amtrak! It's home, dripping comfortably in the driveway (though not much).