will leaving the hubs locked in cause mechanical damage when not using 4 wheel drive?

 

no it will not hurt to leave the hubs locked in and have the transfer case in 4x2. the thing that will hurt is driving on dry pavement in 4x4 because there is no differential operation in the front hubs, which is why it will grab or skip in 4x4 when turning. A downside may be decreased gas mileage, but i have noticed that while having my hubs locked the increased fuel usage is minimal. like .5 mpg or less.
check this out too

http://www.4x4abc.com/4WD101/hubs.html