well after two days full of man flu lol finally started to strip gear box omg how much fun is it goin to be never done one before and didnt know you could cram so much in there lots of pics bein taken lol has anyone done a gear box if so is there anything i should be aware of this is more complex than i thought i will do it as i like a challenge but any advice on horrors or scaries i need to know about would be greatly apreciated

As I said before I can't advise I've not done one myself just have millions of guides. So I'm just going to say..... Good luck ;) 

My advice would be - deep breath, take time and as you have been doing take photos before things come apart then you have something to reference on reassembly :)

And lot's of swearing it helps :D 

I was going to refurb one once. Got it out of the car, drained the fluid, lay it on its side and removed one side of the casing. Took one look and replaced the cover before sending it away.

What ever is in there is black magic and I'm not messing with it :)

Seriously though, take your time with loads of pics and you should be ok.

deffo lots of pics and i can guarantee lots of swearin when it comes to jobs like this i have a diploma in swearin lmao just wish i had a diploma  in 4wd gearboxes lol

i was the same. im a good mechanic and do most of the work myself so when i blew 5th gear in my ra i decided to do it my self. its not as bad as it looks. tho i change my gear ratios to sti  ratio as the ra screamed at 130. got the !Removed! quick but was red line at that speed. the only thing i did not do was re set the shims and back lash. i got a pal to do that as did not trust myself to do it. get it wrong and kiss the box good bye. i replace the all the seals.... input shaft and rear shaft and both diff seals too just to be sure. make sure the box is lying on its correct side or when you remove the upper half all the shafts fall out. also be aware that to much movement on the selctor shafts you may lose the spring loaded ball and its a bas***d to put back in. think i have pics too some where of my rebuild