4wd Issues PLEASE HELP

I wish I was more knowledgeable about the specifics- I have 2 '94s and a '95- but the general diagnostic I'd do would be this;
1. Identify the location of the problem. With the front axle up, engage 4x4, either high or low, and try to spin the front wheels. If they spin without turning the driveshaft, the front axle connection is not engaged. If you verify that the axle is connected, you know it's the t-case. After that, move on to shifting the case by hand to verify positions. It's possible that when the front axle exploded it damaged or bent something inside the case as well.

Eman85 said:

This is a fully mechanical transfer case, nothing in there that "slips out".

It's all mechanical linkage, you can disconnect the linkage and move the lever by hand to select each position.

You said nothing worked except 2wd Hi to start with, all of that is controlled in the transfer case. Why did you change the front differential?

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Pressureangle said:

I wish I was more knowledgeable about the specifics- I have 2 '94s and a '95- but the general diagnostic I'd do would be this;
1. Identify the location of the problem. With the front axle up, engage 4x4, either high or low, and try to spin the front wheels. If they spin without turning the driveshaft, the front axle connection is not engaged. If you verify that the axle is connected, you know it's the t-case. After that, move on to shifting the case by hand to verify positions. It's possible that when the front axle exploded it damaged or bent something inside the case as well.

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You all have been such a huge help! Thank you. I have been reading all the forums and watching all the videos I can find on this, but it's a TON of time investment which alot of the time only explains what we already know, + you guys reply VERY quick!! I wish I could help everyone of you some how. Again, thank you for your knowledge but especially your time! We have 4 vehicles and each one has an issue, so any step in the right direction takes so much stress off my mind.

Here's a little back story about my headaches:

*08 Tahoe has fully functioning 4wd, tranny & engine, just needs tires & the entire front driver side repaired which I'm doing now, ball joints, wheel hub, tie rods Swingarms link. then an alignment, which this is what the Wife will drive to work this winter
*04 Chevy Silverado needed the front of the leaf spring welded back to the frame, thanks to Wife's Tactical Parking Maneuvers which is done! but has n 4wd unsure why, we haven't even looked at it cause it's just been a vehicle for taken stuff to the dump or store runs
*Wife's 08 Buick Enclave needs rear seal and tranny looked at, but has no 4wd

I'll be driving the 95 Tahoe if we're able to fix the 4wd

CountryRoads said:

We had the vehicle hoisted completely up off of the ground, Front wheels went doing anything but the front drive shaft was spinning. We took apart the front differential after we took it out and there were broken pieces inside and the grease on the inside looked like grey glitter paint. So it did need replaced. I'm just going off what my buddy is saying/doing. I've worked on cars my whole life, but mostly suspension and brakes, never anything like this, so I'm completely clueless. Thanks for your input, it all helps

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Originally you said nothing worked but 2wd Hi. if the shaft was spinning then the transfer case was doing it's 4wd thing and it sounds like the front differential had a problem. If you replaced the frt. differential completely then that problem should be gone, did the complete frt. differential get replaced axle tubes axles and all? The system is pretty simple, the transfer case is manually engaged with the lever. When it is engaged it has a switch on it that send 12V to the actuator on the right axle tube. The actuator moved the fork in the tube and engages the frt. differential. There is a small switch on the axle tube that sends a signal to the lighted indicator in front of the 4wd lever showing if the front differential is engaged.

CountryRoads said:

Benton County.

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Not too far from me. I'm in Clinton County. We played Benton Community in football last year and have been over to Atkins many times to Bloomsbury Farms pumpkin patch when the kids were little.

Eman85 said:

Originally you said nothing worked but 2wd Hi. if the shaft was spinning then the transfer case was doing it's 4wd thing and it sounds like the front differential had a problem. If you replaced the frt. differential completely then that problem should be gone, did the complete frt. differential get replaced axle tubes axles and all? The system is pretty simple, the transfer case is manually engaged with the lever. When it is engaged it has a switch on it that send 12V to the actuator on the right axle tube. The actuator moved the fork in the tube and engages the frt. differential. There is a small switch on the axle tube that sends a signal to the lighted indicator in front of the 4wd lever showing if the front differential is engaged.

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Before we did anything, only 2hi moved the wheels.. when the vehicle was manually moved into 4wd modes, the front drive shaft coming out of the transfer case & going into the front differential was spinning, front wheels were not spinning in ANY 4wd mode. THATS why we took the front differential out and put another one in.. that's what I said when i was asked why we replaced front differential. NOW that there's a different front differential in, everything is working except 4HI. 2hi works, 4lo works but is slipping out of gear. I'm pretty sure that's exactly how I originally explained it.

"... slipping out of gear..." sounds like a transmission issue. Unless you mean that in 4LO the front diff engages and disengages on its own, or something to do with the transfer case not turning the front propshaft all the time.

Again, there is nothing in the transfer case that can slip, it is gears. I can say that I have seen a transfer case lose all function but it would go into neutral and the truck would not move at all.