The old console is long gone. I moved the crucial switches back to the dash plate.
Ok so here is the next update. There were alot of stupid bugs to work out. I managed to track down metric bolts and fab up a bracket to relocate the shifter into the best position. It was necessary to move it so that it had an inch of clearance from the dash, console, floor shifter and the cup holder at all times. I think I have it perfect right now. Since I know the offset and rise of the bracket, I can have my machine shop make a Z-Bar more professionally.
I ran into problems getting the clutch to disengage all the way. After some head scratching and research I found that the master cylinder pushrod was nearly 3/16" longer in the model year 95. Also the rod used one less washer and a thinner nylon lock washer so there was almost 5/16" more engagement. It took care of the problems I was having getting it into gear from a stop and put the clutch pedal at the same elevation as the brake pedal.
Once all the stupid things were taken care of it was out the driveway and down the street. I made it 100 feet down the road before I found a nasty grind going into third. I drove it around for a while. Did the double clutch thing but third was just awful. This is not common at all for these trannys unless someone runs the wrong fluid. Even then it would toss all the synchros together. I was pretty convinced the synchro was shot so I took out some frustration at the gym and decided id have to take it back out. Luckily it only took an hour to drop because I was able to leave the bellhousing on the engine. I pulled the cover and instantly got a peek at the trashed third gear synchronizer ring. I ordered up a rebuild kit and it should be here the middle of this week. This is going to be a fun little project rebuilding this thing, but im sure its well within my capabilities. Once complete, it will swap back in place in about an hour. I will also be able to say that I personally rebuilt every part of my drivetrain.
One other thing, the granny low on this thing is intense. Ill probably rarely use it on normal street driving. Coupled with the T-case in low range, the crawl is incredible. I can actually put it into first gear without the clutch and the truck crawls so slow that I jumped out, stood still and I was still moving faster than the truck. The granny gear is going to come in very handy for me.