That's good to know. Do you have a RPO "F44" on your glovebox?
That axle is definitely not "standard" on Z71s 1500 as far as I knew. It was standard on the 2500 light duty version with 6 lugs, however.
But it makes sense now that i think about it. GM is known for using up inventories towards the end of production runs. A 6 lug 14 bolt didn't appear again on the GM 1500 truck lineup until like 2004 or 2005 with RPO code "AXN" under the Silverado SS.