You prolly already know that just because manual not guaranteed to be a 4.10. Not a big deal, though, if you can get hold of a front dif as well. My 96 had 4.10 (open). Now it's got an elocker (rear) and 4.30s. The 99 came with locker and 4.30s stock.

Great pics of your adventure.

Thanks! I wish mine would have come with one stock, but sadly it wasn't an option even in 01. I still need to get under my truck and actually count the rotations and figure out if I do in fact have 4.10's. If I had 4.30's or found a full set of 4.30's I wouldn't complain. I could use the slightly taller gear ratio to give it a little more pep!

Or I can just go all out, regear to 4.88's with ARB lockers front and rear!

No crazy updates that I can speak of right now. I'll actually be moving here in a few weeks to Greenville, South Carolina to start a Co-op up there for the spring semester.

I almost pulled the trigger on a Savage rear bumper with a swingout, but the more I looked at it the more I realized I didn't love the look like I do with the CBI ones so I'll just wait and pick up one of those at some point instead. I still need to get my AOR bumper in and figure out my plans for a winch.

I have managed to get my rear bumper plastidipped though so there's no more chrome on this rig. I debadged the rear hatch, and plan to run only an Overland bound emblem on the lower driver side and an old school "4WheelDrive" emblem on the passenger side. I'm also working on painting my license plate surround. No pics as of right now since the weather has been garbage, but I'll get some when it's all done with the new looking rear end.

Instead of the permanent storage box mounted over the passenger wheel well I've decided to just go with a simple plastic tool box from lowes to keep my things in. This should allow me to keep everything nice and organized, but I can also take it out if needed and leave it at the house or strap it to the roof if I really need space. So far I've got a Viair 88P compressor for Christmas that I'll be keeping in there. I'm about to go order an axe to keep in there and try and find a shovel that I like to keep in there as well. I'm planning on ordering a 48" hi-lift as well to mount in the back using the Sonoran Steel mounts similar to the Patco ones. I'll be getting a Jak-Jaw attachment to use with the jack as well.

I also bought a CB radio and mount. I just need to order my antenna, coax, and spring. I went with a used remote mount unit I got from a member here. For the antenna I plan to go with a 4ft Firestik in black to match my truck. I'll hopefully have that mounted up sometime next week or weekend along with my spacers I still haven't put on...

Tomorrow I'm hoping to get the rear license plate surround painted and the rear cargo floor sound proofed.

I did the soundproofing on the rear floor. I think it actually made a pretty noticeable difference. No pics of the process unfortunately, it was raining lightly the whole time so I just wanted to get it done.

I attempted painting the rear license plate surround twice, both times came out horrid for whatever reason. I think the first time the paint reacted with the adhesion promoter I used and after that I just couldn't get the surface smooth. I dipped it instead and it came out pretty good. I'm nearly done with the rear end now, I'm just waiting for the emblem to come in now. I ordered one in white and dark gray, but realized silver is the color I need to go with my truck so I ordered one in silver today. I'm hoping to have it by this weekend.

I also put a different hitch on and gained a TON of room underneath the truck for my spare tire. I can now fit a 255/75/17 M/T tire underneath. I'm glad I didn't sell that 5th tire that I got with my set over the summer. I'll be picking up a matching rim and finally running a full size spare.

I picked up my CB mount from the powdercoater this morning, I'm hoping to get the rest of the stuff this week and install this weekend. Unfortunately we've had a very wet past several days down here so I haven't been able to install my spacers or take any pictures. Soon enough there should be a photo dump here.

@Unner

Mind giving me a quick explanation of how your Blue Sea Fuse Box works? With the lights and soon to be sound system I'm adding, I'm finding I should probably add a set up similar to yours to keep everything pretty and working smoothly. I've looked for a write up on how to do it and can't find anything.

@Unner ....


still waiting on your photo dump

@MattJakobs

Sure, no problem. They're a little tricky to figure out, but once you know how they work they're super simple. They're definitely a great way to add accessories safely.

20151020_174623 by Unner Unner, on Flickr

So the wire that is coming off the top of the box closest to the master cylinder is the live power wire. It's coming off the battery through that circuit breaker. It provides power to the entire fuse block. The wire coming off the bottom of the fuse box is the ground, mine goes to the fender.

To wire up an accessory with it you put the fuse in the slot you want, add a ring terminal to the wire that goes to said accessory and put it on the screw next to the fuse you just put in the fuse block. Now that wire is live, so long as the fuse is in there.

The bottom half of the box closer to the battery has several grounding screws in it, that just provide a good ground to use. This isn't necessary, you can ground anywhere you would like, I just try and use it as a ground when it is feasible.

The circuit breaker keeps you from overloading the fuse box, I believe it is a 100 amp circuit breaker that I have on the fuse box, and 120 amp on the other wires there going from the alternator to the battery.

I followed @4-Ripcord and his post in his build thread almost exactly when I did my set up. So far it's been great with no issues, makes the wiring safe, simple, and no crazy spaghetti to sort through at the battery terminals.

@infamousRNR

Sorry no pics yet. I got the spacers on today, they look great! Tomorrow is the CB install, and rear diff fluid change. Monday is new O2 sensors assuming they get delivered then. I'm still waiting for my 4WheelDrive decal to come in for the rear hatch to be finished. I also need to get my matching spare tire mounted up and put under the truck sometime this week.

And sometime this week she'll be getting a wash and wax, maybe a clay and polish too if needed. I haven't washed her in 4 months now so... Basically a whole bunch of little things I need to get done before I move. The pics are coming after I get it all shinied up!

I might have to look into getting one of those magic boxes... seems like it will make any electrical installations a lot easier in the future, and the inevitable pain-in-the-ass first installation process.

Perfect. So when hooking up a set of LED lights for example, you have a wire going to your positive terminal and negative terminal. How's that go, through the fuse box?

P.S. I'm horrible at anything electrical.

The positive wire would go to the side of the fuse box with the fuses on it at the top. It's hard to see in my picture, but there are little screws there that you take out and put the wire with a ring terminal underneath the screw and put it back in. Then by putting a fuse in the slot next to that screw you are completing the connection and letting it get 12V power through it.

The negative(ground) wire goes to the side of the fuse box closest to the battery. The two sections are kinda separated, it doesn't matter which screw you put it on, they all go to the same ground. You can also ground it anywhere else, you just have to find somewhere to attach the wire to bare metal, like a bracket, the fender, etc.

Hope that helps. I'm not too great at explaining things...

Matt,

Before you get into how to do the blue sea setup, you need to understand what it even is.

The purpose of the extra fuse box is so you can fuse add-on items on the truck without having to utilize the factory fuse box at all or add in your own 'in-line' fuses to the LED light wiring.

All electrical components (new additions, or existing) should ideally be fused.

You could avoid the box by using 'in-line' fuses, but as you can probably tell, the blue sea box is very popular on this site and makes it easy to add accessories as @Unner said.

It is easier to keep organized with the box VS a bunch of in-line fuses on random wires hanging out in the engine bay looking like spaghetti. For one, you can label the fuses on each accessory item with the blue sea box with a black sharpee marker, etc. Whereas if you had 2 wires for say 3 accessories, you have to know which of the 6 wires is what accessory, etc.

It did, lots. Finding Ripcords thread helped me visualize it too. I was having a hard time trying to find a write-up for it but helped tons. Thanks for your help and it's something I now plan on doing as additional lights get added.
The Rigid lights I have came with an in-line fuse. With that being said though, the length of the wire provided is way more than I need so I was thinking of cutting the in-line fuse out and utilizing this box. I plan on running another set of Duallies plus a few more things so I'd be want this to help with the additional electrical stuff I'm running plus clean it all up a bit.

That's cool. Did it come with a relay and switch as well?

Great! I'm using a rigid harness for my light bar upfront. That's what I did, cut the inline fuse out and put that fuse in the box instead.

Got a good bit done today. New O2 sensors, no corrosion at all made changing them a breeze. Super easy job. I also changed the rear diff fluid, and attempted to put my extended sway bar links on the front on, but they didn't look like they would fit correctly with the way the mount on the LCA is shaped so I'll probably be picking up a set of disconnects from Mike at some point. I also got my full size matching spare installed, and got my 4 Wheel Drive decal delivered today and put on.

My Hi-Lift was delivered as well, and now I'm just waiting on my Jak-Jaw attachment, mounts for the rear cargo area, and parking brake bracket to be delivered from Sonoran Steel.

I checked the torque on my spacers as well today after ~70 miles of driving and none of them budged. That was a great sign, and they are completely steady up to ~75. I didn't try them any faster since I never really even drive that fast. It does feel more stable cornering and on the interstate now as well which is a good thing on such a narrow top heavy vehicle, especially mine with the heavy rack on the roof. The 2.5" increase in track width really does make a difference.

The CB is installed, everything ran and mounted up. The hatch was a little difficult to close with the mount installed, but by taking a wood plane to the hatch side bump stop I was able to make it a lot smoother. The only issue is the SWR meter I bought from Amazon was broken out of the box, I ordered a new one so I can tune my antenna and finally use the radio. I've been scared to so I don't burn it up. I was able to pick up a little chatter on the interstate and the weather radio works flawlessly haha

@infamousRNR

Here's a couple pics to keep you content until I get the truck washed and cleaned up for picture time.

DSC03020 by Unner Unner, on Flickr

Only picture from the spacer install.

DSC03021 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
This wheel is too pretty to be hidden under the truck, I need a swing out haha
DSC03034 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03037 by Unner Unner, on Flickr

VERY close fit, but it works!

DSC03038 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03039 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03054 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03056 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03058 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03060 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03064 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03065 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03066 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
I love this little badge, it's so cool. I like what they're doing too. Everyone gets their own number. I'm #757, I got my dad one for Christmas, he's #758.
DSC03067 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03075 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03076 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
DSC03078 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
The passenger side tire does stick out a little more than the driver side, but I don't think I'm gonna do anything about it for now. It isn't that bad, and I don't want to hit the gas tank skid. I looked at it the other day and tried to push it a little more to the driver side, but I don't think it moved... It is actually hitting the bolts that bolt the rear mount onto the skid. I might call Shrockworks sometime and see if they have any suggestions on what to do about this.
DSC03079 by Unner Unner, on Flickr
Rack in the sunset.

Not looking forward to washing the truck in nearly freezing temps tomorrow, but I really need to...