locking hub question?
 

since i've NEVER had any 4x4 vehicle i wanna ask, is leaving the hubs locked while NOT in 4wd bad ?

Not necessarily bad, it just puts unnecessary wear on the differential and front driveline when it's not needed. A couple of times, me and my friend went of dirt trails with windey streches of concrete in between and he purposely disconnected 4WD, but not the hubs so no major binding (which is bad, really bad) occurs. Locked hubs in 2WD don't produce binding, just keep things moving that shouldn't.

if you have an ifs truck it will eat up the joints on your axles and the boots that protect them. in a solid axle truck it will just turn over your front axles and differential wearing them out quicker. not bad, but also not good either. your truck will last longer if you unlock them. see, while your hubs are locked your wheels and tires are connected to your axle and front driveshaft. if there locked when your not in 4x4 you can drive around but do keep in mind that your axle, differentail, and driveshaft are being pushed around in circles while your driving, thus wearing them out quicker. its not too hard to jump out and unlock them. just do it :) you also will get better gas mileage with them unlocked too

suckas with their always turning axles.
oh wait,that's me.

get outa here charles, you're not cool enough to have a solid axle :D

Sorry to burst your bubble bubba, but CV axles are axles nevertheless :/.

Don't do it all the time every day.
But, when cruising around trail country, leaving the hubs locked and just shift in and out of 4wd when needed is fine. On bad winter days when there are icy spots on the road, there's nothing wrong with leaving the hubs locked and shifting in and out of 4wd when neeeded.

But leaving them locked all the time will cost you gas, affect your handling slightly, and wear out parts faster than need be.

:think:

i find i loose a couple mpg with them locked up

Unnecessary wear if you always leave them locked. Lock them up a little before you need 4wd (you see ice/snow ahead or are about to wheel).That way you can shift into 4 when you do need it without getting out. I like to see how far I can go in mud in 2wd. When I do get stuck, I just shift to 4 and get going. Coming down the mountain after a long day of snowboarding though, the last thing I want to do is get out and unlock. I leave them locked all the way home.
It is not horrible to always leave them locked, but they are there for a reason.