You say it will not come out of reverse & into N smoothly ... first line up the shift levers without the rods attached then reconnect the rods one at a time making sure they are adjusted so the levers shift smoothly side to side through the gates , it should spring into neutral easily if everything is centered correctly .
Second is it dirty ? The spring loaded piece where the handle attaches has to be clean & lubed , I would disassemble the whole unit & lube everything , silicone grease / brake lube should work best .
If you're going to go through the trouble of taking the shifter apart I would recommend you get the rebuild kit from Brewer's and change out the shims, springs, etc. I recently took mine apart and the shims were very worn/scored from no lubrication, after the rebuild it shifted much better. Also when you line-up the linkage positions by using a 1/4" dowel in the top of the shifter it's just a starting point, keep adjusting the rod ends until you like the feel.
Locke
As a follow up this worked great.
I was really having trouble in neutral and getting through the shifter gates.
I had not so long ago addressed the bushings on the ends of the shift rods and the retaining clips as well, so the install was pretty rigid.
I had the old shifter out, and began by soaking it in parts cleaner over the weekend.
I also had a chance to talk to the guys at Brewer's, and a good heads up is not to ignore the levers off the trans for gear selection either, as slop in there will cause grief too.
On Monday I started by getting the 1 end of the case off and getting the guts out.
Despite trying to "spray" some lube in while the shifter was in the car, that was a waste, and after seeing the assembly I see taking the unit apart has no substitution.
So with everything apart, I concentrated cleaning on the "spring mechanism" in the shifter unit with the "button" (looked like a big button for your jeans) that does the lever selection.
I opted NOT to buy anything, and try the free route. I also didn't take the springs out.
As another heads up, I also read that the springs can be a real pain, but an ache saver is close them in a vice, then using safety wire to keep them closed. Then you position them back in place and cut out the safety wire.
While cleaning the spring mechanism I could manipulate the "button" by hand and was seeing the "hang up" is was experiencing while the shifter was in the car.
So after more soaking and cleaning I greased up the hinge/moving parts in the mechanism and got it moving free.
I could spring it open by hand and it would retract all the way on it's own - It wouldn't when I started.
With the spring mech all cleaned and greased I concentrated on my other pieces.
I glass beaded the case, gave it a quick paint, glass beaded the shift levers and checked them for flatness and confirm a smooth surface.
Lastly the original shims were cleaned with a solvent and looked to be in pretty good shape.
I did have some minor scoring on top of the "button" of the spring mechanism in the shifter from what looked like a burr on the 3/4 shift lever that had been dragging over during shifts.
Again I just cleaned and burrs and lightly polished the scoring to smooth it out.
Re-greased all the internals and slapped it back together.
I brought the shifter home with a long 1/4" dowel I used to keep the shifter in neutral.
Bolted it in, stabbed in the 1/4" dowel, went 1 shift rod at a time making sure while in neutral the shift rod slid into the shift lever while not forcing it into location and double checked the rods/connections had no extra slop.
Started the car and now the shifter glides into each gear without any effort.
No problem getting into neutral, across the gates and just feels great.
Rain is on the way, so will have to wait for the test drive but just sitting in the seat is night and day.
Thanks again as usual all
