97 Mazda B4000 4X4 (Ford Ranger with a Maxda nameplate) with switch on
the dash that selects 2WD - 4WD HI - 4WD LO. I rarely use 4WD but
with eight inches of global warming piled up on the road, I put it in
4WD HI and started out. After running into a ditch -- trying to avoid
a doofus in a rea-wheel drive old Buick -- I discovered that my 4WD is
not engaging. As I was driving I thought it felt funny -- when the
4WD is engaged, I can feel it in the steering wheel.

WARN sells a set of manual hubs for my truck -- requires a spindle nut
kit that they also sell. I looked at the installation instructions
and it looks pretty straightforward.

Anyone out there done this?

I'm not really certain how this 4WD system works but it seems to me as
though the dash switch engages the hubs and the transfer case --
right? If I put in the manual hubs, what do I do to engage the 4Wd,
other than engaging the hubs -- do I still need to use the dash switch
and, if so, how do I know it's doing what it's supposed to do.

Thanks.