Steering Column Repair: Chevelle column shift lever, tilt column, column shift

Question
I recently purchased a used 1970 tilt column shift steering column. The previous owner removed the column shift lever to package the column by driving out the pivot pin in the lever. Now I am having problems trying to reinstall the lever. The shift lever will not fully seat into the column by about 1/2". I have tried pushing harder against the spring & putting the lever in while rotating the shift tube to different positions but it always seems about 1/2' off. Am I missing something simple? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks


Answer
Hi Chris:

The only tip I can give you is that you need to angle the shift lever in (as if you were pulling it towards you) when you insert it into the bowl.  The detents for the positions are what you are hitting inside there and you need to clear them.
Make sure you are not pushing the spring in until the lever is seated all the way into the bowl, Then you can push the lever down (as if, towards the dash) and compress the spring to get the pin back in.

Some are tougher than others, but you sound like you're on the right track.
I don't have any picture for a column that old, sorry
Good luck

Doug