thanks for responding Swoop.

batteries fully charged.
i have not inspected armature, but based on age alone i would not hurt for me to inspect.

i can tell you that since the posting a couple days ago, i have found that if i select forward or reverse with the direction shifter lever and manually push in the correct contactor, the pedal speed control/scr controller works correctly, and i can move truck with variable speed.
that leads me to believe that it is relay/contactor issue or wiring.

i wish i had a schematic of the wiring; that way it would be much easier to track down the affected circuit paths.

contactor contacts look good whit normal wear.