You are right, still need to decide on DIY'ing a AC system or buying one. For now I'll route the lines to the cab so I can decide later.
This weekend I finished the shifter mechanism. Well... Finished... I still need a few bolts & shift knobs, but I'm happy with the levers & links.
I wanted to use the existing holes in the transmission tunnel so I got to work. I mounted a stainless plate with some mounting holes on top of the transmission:
The long stud & nut you see will be replaced by a socket head screw. The lever with the rings as spacers will be the transfer case shifter.
From this lever I used stainless rod & ends to go to the transfer case, here is the front side:
And the rear (the rod ends will receive a clamping nut), connected to the transfer case (HF1A), shift pattern H2 - H4 - N - L4:
Then I used some IGUS ESTM splitable bearing blocks to mount the automatic transmission shifter and some two piece shaft collars to center the rod:
Finish welded the two shifters and put a bend in the transmission shift lever so it would clear the heater & AC under the dash:
Links to the automatic transmission shifter side:
And the transmission side, I welded a bolt to the old piece that fits inside the rubber with a retaining clip:
The bend looks nice, everything is installed here. Just have to replace the four hex bolts that hold the bearing blocks with socket head screws:
This is park position, transfer case in H2:
Drive position and transfer case in H4, also shifts nicely to N & L4:
I tapped some M16x2 threads on the 16mm stainless rod. Next I will 3D print some nice shift knobs with the shift pattern on them.
The shifters have a real nice mechanical feel to them and I really like to use the original locations & style instead of an automatic style transmission shifter.