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WHAT? Your hub's are manual engage. Meaning, you have to get out and manually turn the dial from 2WD to 4X4. You should hear/ feel them "click" into place. Now, it's possible that the hub's may be dry, and or the return spring inside them broken or gone. It's also possible, that perhaps the last time they were serviced, that too much grease was used, causing them to not lock (due to way to much grease not allowing the lock ring enough room to move) I don't think your gonna have a problen with U-joints, if one was locked up, as soon as you engaged a hub, you wouldnt be able to drive with out something singing "SNAP" rather loudly.
If your courious about your front driveline working or not, support the front axle on jack stands. Put the transfer case in N (neutral) and lock the hubs. (LEAVE MOTOR OFF!) After that, rotate a tire. While the tire is rotating, look at it's axle (inside the knuckle) if it's rotating as the tire is, then the hub is engaged. Unlock the hub and do the same thing. if the axle shaft continues to spin (with the hub UNLOCKED) then the hub is NOT unlocked and stuck, do both wheels. You can also check the differential, by spinning the front drive line. Hub's unlocked, the front tires shouldn't move.
Inside the hub, you find a couple items. The axle shaft, with a C-clip a lock ring that engages the hub when which is connected to the wheel, and the return spring, which pushes the lock ring away from the hub, thus UN-locking the hub. There's a cam also, but it's part of the hub cap.
As far as using the transfer case. you don't need to be in neutral to shift it, just have the clutch depressed fully, grab the lever and give a shove. Now, sometimes you may find it neecessary to have transmission in a gear and while attempting to shift the T/C let the clutch out and start moving a little (while still attempting to move the T/C lever) It'll usually jump into LOW then, Or high depending.
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