Ok...
Injectors changed... timing bumped a little more then a dimes thickness (full centerpunch dot basically) and it finally has a bit of rattle.
With the injectors all changed and the lines bled, it ran quite a bit smoother. Brought it up to temp then shut it down and bumped the timing up. No real change in haze... still a PITA to start... but throttle response is crisp and it sounds healthy... not lazy.
Anyways, climbed under the truck after shutting off the electric lift pump (with the truck still running), and the clear lines I used to hook up the pump started rolling bubbles through them from the tank towards the engine. The supply line has been spliced multiple times and doesnt appear to be in good shape at all... so I'm going to pick-up a 25' roll of 3/8" steal line tomorrow after work and run a new line from the tank to the mechanical lift pump. For the time being, I'm going to delete the tank switch valve (rear tank is unhooked as it is) and run new from the sending unit forward.
Besides the shower head, is there any other potential air leak on the pick-up/sending unit? If no, I'm going to wait to pull the sending unit until I get the parts to repair the gauge sender.
As it sits, at operating temp, I can shut the truck off... hit the starter immediately after and it acts as if its not getting fuel. I can then crank on it off and on for approximately 3 minutes or so while playing with the throttle and it'll finally cough and sputter its way to life. Thats after changing the injectors (no change in how it starts), and bumping timing up (also no change in how it starts).
Could all of this BS just be supply line air intrusion?
On a side note, I'm pretty certain the IP, lines, and IP mount/gear cover were all from a 6.9. When I pulled the passenger side injectors tonight, I found there was no timing adapter on the #1 injector and the line didnt appear to be bent to compensate. Also, it has a 6.9 style oil fill (which I actually like a bit better). The pump itself is missing the data tag and it has certainly been turned up (I'd venture to say maxed out) as any hard throttle or any load while driving just rolls black out of the stack. The turbo kit will clean it up.. but if it being turned up could be causing issues, I'll tear into it and back it off a bit.