Been a while since I visited here, just got caught up....
When you do/if, go back to the 95 CAD axle, the 2 spade electrical connectors on the shift fork housing are for the 4wd hi/low dash lights. The stock wire harness goes back to the vac relays located behind the pass side headlight. The two vac line nipples are for the hard vac lines (do not use soft lines), that also go to the vac relays. The vac ball is inline with these. It keeps vac pressures a constant.
If you do want to lock it, do not weld them! Lock Rite makes a lunchbox locker for it. When doing this, another resource (besides Mgreens) is to follow JDrapers mod for the switch install. It works!
To wrap your head around this axle, and what makes it different, is it has an extra passenger side shaft (intermediate shaft) inside it. A simple splined collar slides and connects them together for 4wd. A fork sits around this collar, and it moves side to side about 1.5". When vac is applied to it, it moves the fork, and either connects, or disconnects those two shafts. Engine has to be running to create vacuum, for this to work.
There is one vac relay for each action. Each pull the fork one direction. So when switched on, the fork moves the collar outboard, and connects both splined ends together, creating one shaft from gears, to cv axles. When switched off, the fork moves the collar inboard, and the outer pass side shaft is free, and no power to the wheel. You must be stopped, and in N to engage this. Both inner & outer shafts have splines that slip into the splined collar. Stock has a safety feature, that makes you press the brake pedal for it to engage the shift fork. You don't want one side spinning faster then the other, trying to get them to connect together in the collar. This assures nothing is moving when they connect.
A 97+ live axle, there is no intermediate axle shaft, and there is always power to the front cv axles because of this. The 4405 t-case sends power when needed, by sensing slippage from the abs sensors. Power is increased in 10% increments, up to 50%. Sounds great right? Well, this action requires a magnet clutch set up, and these fail big time with age, and are generally weak sauce. Remember....Soccer Mom / Grocery getter was the intended buyer, not the off roader. 1354 manual case solves this with the 4.0L, and a 4406 for the 5.0L. Now you have true 2wd and true 4wd with these cases. With these cases, and the CAD, you will get increased MPG, the option of adding a locker, and full control of your vehicle. For anything else, I would only go as far to install a select-able LSD. Which, is actually great for light trails, and anything on the street. Not cheap tho.
Whatever you decide, just do not weld it. lol