locking hubs on a 46?

 

So what's the point of locking hubs?  Shifting into 2WD will break the connection between the engine and the tires, but the tires will still be connected to the axle.  And any time the axle can drive the tires, the tires can also drive the axle (another "Duh" statement).  It's OK to drive in 2WD with the front tires driving the front axle, but if you can unlock the front hubs, then you have less drag, less wear, and less vibration when you are in 2WD.  Is that important?  Depends on how you use your vehicle, but those are the reasons you might want to unlock front hubs.

 

How about the rear?  That's just if you are towing your Jeep (towing it behind another vehicle with at least the rear tires on the ground).  Without unlocking the rear hubs the rear tires will drive the axle which will drive the transfer case, which (if not in neutral) will drive the transmission.  The transmission and transfer case aren't really built to be run without the input side turning to splash gear lube around, so you can burn them up doing that.  To avoid that potential damage you need to break that connection.  Unlocking rear hubs is the easiest way to do that, so it's a popular modification on vehicles that will be towed a lot.  But you can also do it by pulling the rear axle shafts (if you have a full-floating rear axle, or else by removing the rear driveshaft.  Both of those work to protect the transfer case and trans, they just aren't as easy as unlocking hubs.