Can't shift into 4th gear., ¿#&@$%! Options

[Air_Cooled_Nut]

Ok, I've been adjusting the shifter in the cabin per the various shop manuals. Currently, I can get every gear except 4th. Even the slightest of changes doesn't seem to work. If I take slightly larger adjustments, my shifting becomes R-1-2-3 or 2-3-4-5. So, yes, 4th is possible and I was able to use 4th for a couple of months prior to this sudden blockage (for lack of a better word). It's as if a rubber bumper was placed in front of the shifter where the 4th gear position should be.

Now, this car is of questionable past and shows signs of neglect. 1-2 gears need to be eased into otherwise they grind. I do have a rebuilt tranny that I kept from my last teener but I really don't want to install it unless I really have to i.e. the failure is in the original tranny. She's still driveable, it would just be nice to have use of 4th gear.

When I dropped the engine/tranny to fix the oil leaks and clean everything, then put it back into the car, I installed new shifter bushings and cone screws, and liberally greased everything. Could it be that I put the engine in slightly askew? Suggestions/help please.

[SGB]

yep I overlooked the one Joe described when replacing bushings, and the added load took it from sweet shifting to non-shifting in about two days. That one is a little challenging, but not expensive or complex. Good tech article on Pelican Parts iirc....
Under the car where the shift rod assembly enters the firewall inside a rubber boot, there is a hard bushing made of something that just crumbles entirely when it fails. The bushing is held in place by a pin that must be pressed out in a vice, so the whole shift rod assembly has to be pulled out of the car. For me, the worst part of the job was getting the rubber boot back on. It truely seemed too small, but eventually I got it back on there. (IMG:http://www.914world.com/bbs2/html/emoticons/smash.gif)