ARB OME dented nitrocharger shock

I just finished replacing the lower bushings in OME nitrocharger shocks. My friend manages an auto repair shop. I don't have a press and he does small stuff like this for me all the time. As I was getting ready to reinstall the shocks, I noticed that there is a large dent in the side. Looks like the tech who did the work didn't have the shock properly supported in the press and dented it.

I reached out to ARB tech support and they recommended replacing it. I also searched around the internet and found varied opinions on whether or not it's still safe to use. What do you guys think?

 

Id run it. No info to support that decision. Just my .02

 

Couple things, if the shock travels that far it could bottom out and get damaged when it impacts the dent (or get stuck) there's a good chance the shock doesn't go that far though.

At the very least, with the shock being pressurized (and now dented) it's safe to say it's going to be stiffer.

I'd get a free replacement. It's damaged now. If that's not an option, I'd run it until it fails.

 

It's a twin tube design, so the piston doesn't ride inside that first chamber, it rides inside the internal one. A small dent is usually fine but that's pretty big.

I would cycle the shock travel by hand to see if you feel anything when the piston would go past that point. If you feel nothing then you could run it.

Worst case scenario you have to replace it anyway

 

Backing up on a rock did this damage