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I thought I'd post some more info on my lights, specifically the cost of setting them up. If I had to venture a guess, I'd say this project cost less than $100 for every piece and part involved. It's hard to guess because I had all the zip ties, connectors, heat shrink, wire, etc laying around but $100 seems about right. That said, my projects tend to be 'feature heavy', which is a nice way of saying overly complex/costly ;-) Here's some good info for anyone wanting to follow in my footsteps:

First off, I got the idea from Omelet on Jeep Forum, so that's a good place to start.
Also, I used Hitlight's site to figure out which LEDs to buy, but ended up purchasing on Amazon.

I wanted the brightest lights I could get, so I went with these on Amazon: 16ft for $45 with 220Lm/ft.

A more budget minded DIYer could easily get away with these on Amazon: 16ft for $23 with 144Lm/ft.

I think those are the lights that Omelet used.

You could also use some cheap speaker wire, a bit of solder, a roll of black tape and a toggle switch for another $15. Call it under $40 for something almost as good as mine.

A couple of things I'd note. Omelet soldered his wire directly to the contacts on the LED strip. I had problems doing this and making a good connection. I'm sure that's due to my inexperience at soldering, but it's something to consider. If you get the little connectors like I did, make sure you get the right ones! They are different for the 5050 vs the 3528 lights.

Also, I really like that all my lights are mounted at 45degs. The aluminum angle only adds about $1/ft to the project, and I think it was well worth it. I get better light dispersion compared to other rigs I've seen with similar rock lights. This is very dependent on what the underside of your vehicle looks like. You might have nice spots to mount, you might not.

I think this is a great DIY project, one where you can get better results than pre made solutions, for less money. As with any DIY, you have to factor in your time, and unless you are making minimum wage that will totally blow your cost savings :-( For me, I don't include my time in projects like this because I consider it a hobby. I get great enjoyment from tinkering in the shop, and that's the best reason in the world to DIY something!

Normally trail riders want easy access to these tow points. Yes, they absolutely can be used, but standard OEM mounts are a hassle.

Generally if they aren't easy to see and get to on the trail without climbing under a rig, the average cable puller will not consider them tow points, and some trail leaders might not let you go on a trail without purpose installed after market hooks. Usually vehicles only have one front and rear tow point and you need two front and two rear for safety and convenience. Hooks are considered basic off road items.

However, all this depends on how you plan to use it off road. Are you wanting to trail it, or camp, light excursions?

They are cheap and easy to install and can be tucked under the bumper if you like. Just bolt them to the frame, don't weld them there. Welds will generally fail before bolts because lets face it, you will be "snatched" more than pulled if you are stuck and not high-centered.

Get at least one (or two) good tow rope(s) and attach it before you go out and just toss the free end in your window, or on your roof. This way when you get stuck, you can climb out and just toss the rope to the rig in front of you and your are out in a jiffy. This will really go a long way to good karma on a trail if you aren't asking others to come get you, or slowing down the others because you unhook after every pull. You will end up using your rope 4x more than a winch anyway unless you are alone on a trail.

Any wheeling will be horrible on gas milage, but if you want to be tidy and keep your rig looking clean, I have seen more than a few people use hitch-mounted winch mounts with handles and only have the winch there when wheeling. And you can toss it in the back and lock it up when your not using it as a daily driver.

Installing a tow hitch in the front and rear to move a winch from front to back as you need is not perfect, but it is very acceptable when done safely, so you get two-for-one winching. Make sure you take good measurements, or have one custom made, or even just go to your local 4x4 shop and get them to help you with the measurements. Never significantly cut/alter an OEM hitch for obvious reasons.

A secondary benefit to a tow hitch on both ends is you can use it as a tow point instead/in addition to tow points and move this around as needed also.

As far as a winch, you don't need a 18k monster, but enough to tug yourself out. General rules are 2-3x your vehicles weight. On a trail, most often if you are in a caravan, a good trail leader will put you sandwiched between two experienced trailers, so about 1/2 the time you will just pull rope to the rig in front and use it as your anchor. So weight shouldn't be a big issue.

Also get a snatch block and a tree saver so you can pull yourself out if you need to. This way you don't harm the tree, but still use it to get yourself out.

1. tires
   
2. tow points (however you want) and ropes
   
3. winch
   
4. lift?
   
   But first, tires.
   
   Ask anyone that has been on a trail, MT tires (not AT's) should be your first investment. You can get a really good MT that will last a very long time as daily use if you do not get an overly aggressive tread. And they look badass.

It’s difficult to find anything <$200. There’s the cheap Curt hitch on Amazon. Floats around $85 give or take.

I think it might look kind of derpy on a full size SUV but it would do the job.

Honestly, your best bet is probably to find a local machine shop and see if they would weld something up for you. I bet for $150 you could pay somebody with some time and talent to make something a bit nicer than the Curt hitch. Maybe it could at least swing downward for tailgate clearance.

Also, depending on where you are, keep an eye in FB marketplace and Craigslist. I see tire mounts pop up every once in a while.

Nice tire mounts are expensive for a reason. It takes a lot to keep a heavy, oversized tire from rattling around and making vibrations with thousands of miles of off road use and debris.

First item isn't recovery, but it is the number one item I always recommend. I've been in the position to need a fire extinguisher when one wasn't available. Vehicle was a total loss and it was a long walk out of the woods.

https://www.amazon.com/21006287MTL-Kidde-Automotive-Extinguisher-Disposable/dp/B077KGCD6Z/

For recovery gear, there are several nice kits that make a great start.

https://www.amazon.com/Rugged-Ridge-15104-28-000lb-Recovery/dp/B00426HZXS

Then I'd get a trail jack

https://www.amazon.com/Smittybilt-2722-Universal-Trail-Jack/dp/B001CF3JFA

Finally, yes, the kinetic ropes are GREAT. But I'd first have a winch as it is much more versatile. Rope:

https://www.amazon.com/Bubba-Rope-176680RDG-Breaking-Strength/dp/B007HYR85W

About a month ago, I bought a rustoleum kit for truck bed liner DIY style for my B4000. This is the product but I got it for just under 100 bucks at Wal-Mart where I live.

This stuff isn't paint, it's a two part epoxy mixture with a really long cure time. The fumes are pretty horrible, and the smell is bound to linger for quite a while if you use it on the interior. Regardless, it came out very nicely (i'll post pictures later) and I think it was well worth the 100 bucks or so it cost.

The prep work was rather intensive. You have to get every inch of every surface you plan to line with it really clean. Then, you have to go over all surfaces again with a sanding block to rough up the surface. That ensures the liner will form a strong bond. Then, you have to go over every surface again with laquer thinner to get the extremely fine loose particles out. Then you can start applying it.

It goes on in two to three coats with 30 minutes in between. The paintbrush is great, but have some extras on hand if the included one starts to get full of the epoxy and isn't working very well. Keep in mind that using a paint brush for this job renders it ruined once it's done.

If you really take your time and do the prep work well, it'll come out amazingly.

https://www.amazon.com/Escaper-Traction-Off-Road-Extraction-20333/dp/B00AV2HONS

MAXSA Escaper Buddies are great, I cannot praise them enough. I’ve used them for two seasons now and they’re still good as new. The key is to be very careful not to spin your tires on them. If you spin tires then you melt the plastic and the little nubs flatten. You want to position them where your tires won’t spin at all. Plus if your tires are spinning, you need to adjust anyways because it means you still don’t have enough traction for forward motion.

These have saved me out of quite a few precarious situations. They have held up very well and just on my last trip we jacked up a YJ and used two of these board stacked on top of each other as a platform in the snow to jack from. They held up great and no signs of cracking or breaking!

I go to Moab every year in my stock Toyota FJ. I would recommend getting this book for your journey. It gives tons of info on all of the trails (turn-by-turn directions), and tells you how difficult they are. I would stick to the easy trails in your Bronco, I've found that "intermediate" in Moab is pretty hardcore. There are plenty of easy trails out there that will still get your heart racing and provide ridiculous views. Two of my favorites are Gemini Bridges and Long Canyon. I'll be there next weekend!

Get some books.

Start here:

https://www.amazon.com/Four-Wheelers-Bible-2nd-Motorbooks-Workshop/dp/0760335303

Then grab some guide books with ranked trails for where you live/wheel.

Start at the easy trails and work your way up.

Join a club and do the trail runs. Work out what sort of activities you enjoy.

A common mistake newbs make is to look straight toward lifts. But for most terrain lifting a vehicle doesn't add any capability unless it also allows you to fit larger tires. There are way better upgrades to do first. People lift for looks and that is fine, just understand it's purely cosmetics.

As you work up in difficulty level on the trails, be prepared to analyze what you need to increase the capability of your vehicle. Once again, it's terrain & activity dependent.

If you are mostly overlanding then you may not be seeking out hardcore trails. No real need for lockers & mud terrain tires, a winch as emergency backup may be a better investment.

Make sure you bring something to re-inflate them too! Investing in a decent direct-to-battery pump is a great idea for this trip and anytime in the future. Those cigarette lighter pumps are really not designed to re-inflate multiple larger volume tires (these are great https://amzn.to/2ZMPuQD - used one for years to re-inflate after off-roading)... And a shovel too.

Deflating even stock 32" tires (in my Wrangler JKU, to around 20 PSI) significantly increased traction - I could go anywhere. When you air back up, the lack of traction is astounding. Just keep your speed down when you air down that low.

Are you using a wiring harness like this one that uses a relay? http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JB69438?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_search_detailpage

I would just disconnect either the ground or positive of the light bar, whichever is easiest and do a simple test, if that doesn't work then test the voltage of your battery, if it is low then try getting a jump start.

If you want a fun read, check this book out: "First Overland": Driving two Land Rovers from France to Malaysia.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/1909930369

I liked the audio version, because of the accents and the narration.

Pretty sure it's just a standard forest service road.

But
These books are great for trails.
Pretty much the bible.
https://www.amazon.com/Guide-Moab-Backroads-4-Wheel-Drive-Trails-ebook/dp/B01HU8ZP5O

There is one for Ca too but it's not as good.

Here's the one I got: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006NZTZLQ/

It's a great device for getting codes or other diagnostic info out of your vehicle. Various apps and things available (like Torque) to find out what is going on "under the hood."

Thanks!

Amazon.com MV-50



Amazon.com MV-1050

Got two of these from Pep Boys for my truck. There's a few mods you can do to them you can find with a quick Google Search to help them out a bit. But for the price you can't beat it compared to a similar performance couple hundred dollar ones. I've had one last me about 6 years and my newer two have been with me about 2 years now.

MasterFlow MF-1050 Air Compressor https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000L9AD2U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_JXELybECMQSYK

Big brother (never used by me yet)
SuperFlow MV-90 Air Compressor https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001RCTV46/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_G2ELybJSXB5EY

10,000lb recovery strap w/ tow hooks and hardware along with these:

www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00AV2HONS/ref=pd_aw_sbs_1?pi=SS115&simLd=1&dpPl=1&dpID=41r0N2OOheL
Edit: you may want a higher rating than 10,000 depending on your use!