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why the original military stuff is so much more complicated the later aftermarket items> Case in point, I bought the original, in cab heater. The installation instruction manual asks me to remove the thermostat, drain the coolant, and drill all sorts of holes through the firewall.
I 'm getting the original military turn signal upgrade kit, and I can already see it looks way more involved than any civilian version.

The military had some really good ideas most of the time. Some are overkill, like the heaters. They definately will work. Very expensive, and are routed for delivery like the defroster. I had some bad experience with VW gas heaters and stay with hot water type if I can. If you are not going for a restoration-type heater, the old Chevy pickup style heaters work great. John

Thanks. I just like the look and idea of putting original parts in the truck. I have the original in cab heater sitting in my garage closet. I had to strip and paint it (it was exposed to some rust) but I think it looks way better than the aftermarket one I installed in my CJ7.
Some with the military turn signals. Way more of a headache to install, but it looks so much better than the chrome plated aftermarket version.

In most military accessory kits the design motivations were they had to be strong enough, reliable enough and work with the rest of the military equipment on the truck and hold up in the desert and the arctic climates as well as under combat conditions.

The aftermarket stuff just had to sit there, look pretty and be easy enough for a 5 year old to install.

Try to find one single aftermarket heater kit that matches the capabilities and strength of either the gas or hot water military kits.

Good answer! Makes me even more confident of going all original!