Posted by Clint Dixon on Saturday, November 27, 2004 at 10:18AM :
In Reply to: Are the shocks on the front the same as the rear on the 46-5 posted by Matt in- IN/KY on Friday, November 26, 2004 at 8:05PM :
The front and rear shocks were assigned different part numbers by Dodge. I don't "think" there is difference in length between the two, but it has been so a long time since I have had them off and side by side. I really do not remember how the extended and retracted lengths compare. The one part of each that I can measure and compare on the truck is the upper tubes of the shocks. This tube covers the shock rod and telescopes over the main body or lower tube upon compression. The length of this upper tube measures the same on both front and rear shocks.
There is one visible difference between the front and rear, which probably warranted unique part numbers. The rears have one thing the fronts do not, a rock shield or guard spot welded to the lower tube assembly. This guard is simply a piece of sheet metal, about 16ga in thickness, measuring 7" long x 2-3/4" wide. It is rolled into a radius that fits the O.D. of the lower tube of the shock. These guards should face towards the front of the truck when the shocks are installed. The design intent of these appears to be to offer protection of the lower tubes from damage by rocks kicked up from the front tires.
My Dodge Power-Wagon Preliminary Parts List shows an exploded view of the shock absorbers. The image is noted as "Front and Rear Shock Absorber (Exploded View)." It has callouts with arrow leaders denoting each individual part by name and group code. It does not, however, cover these individual group codes in the part name and description section of the book.
If someone here had a parts manual (maybe late '40s 2WD) that covers part numbers for group codes 17-26-xx, that probably still would not definitely answer the question. The early POWER-WAGON shocks are listed as having never been previously listed for Dodge Trucks.
Clint
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