Here in the rust belt, back when virtually all 4wd vehicles were part-time with locking hubs, most folks would leave their hubs locked once the first snow started. The combination of slush, salt and cold made it difficult to lock or unlock hubs.
I have an FJ80 with 150k mi and the birfields have been turning the entire time with no issues. They do need to be repacked every 50-60k, tho..
