The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk Knee action shocks

I've got 4 of the original knee action shocks for my '40 1/2 ton. Need to go through them and reseal, etc. What am I going to find when I take the cover off, assuming it's a normal shock, no internal damage, etc.? Once I get it apart, what do I need to do to make sure it's in good shape? I haven't seen anyone selling gaskets, seals, etc. for these. I just want to go into these with my eyes wide open. Is there anything I need to be wary of or aware of with regard to these old shocks? Thanks everyone!

Neil
1940 GMC 1/2 ton
1934 Chevy 1/2 ton

careful

i think that there is a big spring that needs to be assembped in a press

if you take it apart it will possably blow the cap off in your face

i dont know much more than that but someone here will

rh

I,ve never heard of anyone overhauling them thereselves but maybe if you have an old manual it might have something on it. I,ve always filled em with fluid & they seem to work fair. You can get exchange rebuilts or send them out for rebuild. If you don,t need complete originality you can change them over to tube shocks. How do you like Bend OR. My brother in law is building a new home there. He thinks its the greatest place on earth. George

Thanks guys. I did remove the cover on one just to take a look. There was some pressure from the spring but didn't seem to be enough to blow the cap off and take off my head or anything. Just alot of blackish oil in it. I knew about a spring in there but had taken steps to avoid an accident.

George-Bend is a great town. I'm originally from the Bay Area and had an opportunity to move up here 2-1/2 years ago. My wife and kids really love it. 1/2 hour from skiing, lots of fishing & hunting, mt. biking, etc. Very active community and LOTS of 'Bolts to drool over. It's high desert so the trucks, like my '40, that were parked in 1970 have minimal amounts of rust.

I want to keep the original shocks on this truck, so I'll read all other input and decide what to do.

Thanks again,
Neil

Replace 'em with tube shocks and paint 'em black so they don't stick out like a sore thumb.

If you're going for 100% stock original, then i'd probably find some rebuilds.. way better than running the risk of taking a chunk of metal in the face at +150 fps.

I'm thinking about replacing mine with tube shocks. You got any pics of the front or rear brackets that you came up with?

Neil- Check with The Filling Station there in Oregon, they may have the shock rebuild parts you need.

I have a 40 1/2 ton and decided to go with Jim Carter's tube conversion kit. I haven't installed it yet but it looks like a good setup.

It was $280, so compare to what rebuilds would cost. I'm not keeping mine a 100% original since I'm putting in a 235 so I figured another mod wouldn't be a big deal. When it's done though only bolters will know the difference.

130 bucks from apple hydraulic for a rebuild of yours. The older manuals show the procedure. But special tools are required. They want you to check the bore and shaft. Shock needs to be replaced if they're bad. Oversize pistons were/are availble for the rebuild. The special tools hold the spring open for inspection and repair, there's a special drift and support to facilitate removal and installation of parts. Nothing that specialized though.

http://www.applehydraulics.com/delco.htm

ck with Jeff, he has what you need.
http://www.bowtiebits.com/

If you aren't going to stay original, go with the tube shocks. I put them on my 46 and they make a huge difference in the ride.

I kept the knee action shocks in the back, so I'm running the tublar and the knee action in back and just the tube shocks in front. Don't ask why I kept them in the back I don't know. I guess I just like the way they look. They don't do a great deal but I kept them anyway.

Good Luck
George