Mike wont respond to PMs very often, as he spends most of his time in the shop, working, not on the forum, reading PMs (which would take up most of his time).
As for the MT2 vs crt.5 = read, learn, enjoy. You dont see many Mt2 conversions, nbut lots of people convert the .5, and Mike has lots of aftermarket part for the .5 too so that speaks volumes. If you want a cheap, smaller 4wd truck, then I'd say go to ebay and see what you can find, as prices vary alot depending on condition etc etc- depends what exactly you want to do with the vehicle when you have it; horses for courses and all that.
http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/showthread.php?t=7841 Mikes contact details are in there.