4x4 Questions...

[dinkster]

Welp, got to test all of this out today. They plowed around my truck and it was stuck pretty good. They piled it almost as high as the top of my tires on the driver's side, and it iced/froze over...

So, I got out, dug down to the hubs and locked them. I popped in the cab and drove right out. Then when I got out, I took it back out of 4x4 from a stop. I drove the rest of the way to work with the hubs locked, but unlocked them when I got there.

Problem was, I got some snow/ice stuck in a couple tires so it felt like my tires were extremely out of balance on the drive here. lol

 

[Thunder]

Dinkster.
You have a 241 Xfer case in your 89. You can shift in and out of 4x4 high and 2WD at any speed below 55 mph ( as recomended in owners manual). The 241 is designed to do this and will not harm it in any way.
You should not drive in 4x4 on dry pavement. It will cause unnessary wear and binding on your xfer case and front end. The 241 is not designed to be a full time 4x4. It will also kill your MPG. When the pavement gets dry simply reach down and shift into 2wd. You can leave the hubs locked in if you want to, without harm.