Awd

[zeake]

Well the axles, don't hold the wheels on, but they do hold the preload on the wheel bearings. They will not last 10 miles with the axles out. You can take the end shaft out of the CV axles and leave them bolted into the bearings or use 2wd bearings.

The transfer case will transfer 100% to the rear with the 149 without the front diff. It will work fine as a 2wd, but it will ruin it for AWD.
If you swap in the 2wd tranny you will have to do something about the driveshaft length, the 2wd ECSBs all use a 2 piece shaft with a carrier bearing.

I could not remember exactly what the deal was with the front. It will kill a 149. You could still drive around but the tc will die. Cheaper and easier to just replace the front diff. If your transfer case is not a 149 it won't transfer power to the rear end. Some transfer cases use the computer and brake control to transfer power to front and rear. Check to see what transfer case you have.
For what its worth I bought a front diff for around 400$