first thing would be raise the front end up and spin the tires while holding the pinion still . if you can't the hubs are locked. 2nd would be install manual hubs.
Yeah, I know...lol...got the manual hubs on another front axle assy, just need time do do the converrsion.
Guess I shoulda phrased the question differently, it was late and I was tired. What I did was grab the front pinion and rotate it by hand in reverse so as to hopefully ensure that the hubs stay unlocked. They were unlocked and in 2wd when I pulled the front driveshaft. Does this do the trick?
Pulled the driveshaft to make access to fuel lines, pump, wiring harness etc easier because I installed the dual tanks from another parts truck. Haven't put it back in because I still need to get a good five speed and manual tcase to swap in, so it's coming out again anyways.
EDIT: Oh yeah also removed the electric tcase wiring when I swapped everything around, so even though tcase was in 2wd when I unhooked it all, I can't shift it at the moment.