Don't let him weld the shaft...it'll warp and the resulting vibration will destroy the rag joints and couplers on the driveshaft. The centrifugal disconnect clutch is NLA and hard to find. What's wrong with it? They're pretty simple and robust. I have had one diesel with one, and one without it, and there wasn't much of an ease-of-starting difference between the two. A new driveshaft could be made and the clutch eliminated. Run it at full throttle; if there is vibration, you'll be going through the driveshaft anyway. These things eat driveshafts.
Check the rear-to-frame bolts to make sure they are there and tight, and make sure the rearend hasn't broken where the front frame mounts attach. If they have, you'll be replacing the rearend.
I would also look for coolant leaks, blown head gasket, fuel leaks, etc so you know what kind of headaches you may encounter. That thing looks like it's been neglected a bit, so look it over carefully.
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