3/tree woes

you sound like me!!! thungs to check on":

the adjusting wheel at the cable is slightly off.?

the pushbutton mechanism needs t be cleaned and lubed with spray silicone ( what has been recommended to me)

the pushbutton is missing / broken part?

the adjustment for the pushbutton vs a floor shift is different, that is the position you start at.

hope this helps.

there are other methods to adjust he sucker. I forget where I found them now.

On a 3 speed column shift??? :D

To the OP,
It sounds like slop in the connecting joints of the linkage and/or out of adjustment linkage issues.
Locking in a gear us usually adjustment problems.
I have tightened up a lot of manual linkages in my life and it takes time and patience to do it but can be done with nylon bushings and spring washers (even if you have to go to Ace Hardware for basic nylon sleeves and make the bushings)



I think I would do this first, and then check adjustment