pullin hard

how in the heck do you get the dash out of these trucks???
i had everything removed, spent hours taking everything apart, had the whole face of the dash off, couldn't get the top dash pad off or out. i needed to get my heater box(hvac) out of the truck as i need to replace the evaporator, but i couldn't get it out.i have never been stumped like this before, i had to put everything back together so i could drive it home. i guess it is off to the dealer tomorrow, to see what they are going to charge me to do the job. i was told that the have like a 5.5 hour book time to do that job, but i can't see it, unless i am missing something.

ColdCase

If you mean the very top dash panel, under which is the speakers and such, the shop manual says its held on with several clips. You need to slide a thin tool between pad and dash to release it. I don't recall any screws, but there may be two.

I have no idea if you need to remove that pad to get access to the heater. Don't have the manual with me.