Have you tried letting the truck warm up with the radiator cap off? Look down in there when it gets hot and see if you notice circulation (carefully).

 

no i haven't. i tried to relieve the pressure by cracking the cap just a little bit last friday and i ended up with second degree burns on half of my left arm. to say the least i'm a little gun shy right now

 

Yeah, been there done that. It's best to take the cap off when cold and let it warm up while the cap is off.

 

i didn't get a chance to mess with it at all today but i did get some new belts. gonna start with the cheap stuff and work my way up until it doesn't overheat anymore. the belts that are on the truck now are oem so it needed new ones, i'll get these on and let it warm up without the cap on. even with the 195* thermostat before it stayed between cold and the middle mark (about the second mark)

 

if i take the thermostat out and start the truck i should be able to see the radiator circulating right away correct?

 

Correct. If you are thinking it is a water pump problem remember that when a water pump goes you will get no heat in the cab. Do you currently have heat in the cab?

 

I did notice that you stated you installed a new Water Pump. I would make sure that the new pump is not for the newer V8's with a Serpentine belt. I think that the newer pumps are reverse rotation. So you want to make sure you put the right pump on the truck