904 shift pattern questions

[discharger1332]

i recently aquired a 72 swinger with a /6 and 904 from a 68 barracuda. the p.o. could not get the engine swap figured out and sold it with the 68 stuff installed but not all buttoned up. he said he never took the shift linkage out of the car. So i went ahead and hooked up the shift linkage and it seems like the pattern is backwards. the only neutral gear is D.
I read on here that in 68 park is all the way back on the lever. did that change by 72?
or is my linkage backwards somehow?
when the shifter in the car is in P the lever on the trans is all way forward.
thnax for any input and advice.
the car is not running yet so i can not really confirm what the gear the tranny is in, but do not want to try and start it in 1.

 

[383Scampman]

This is the scary part of buying someone elses mess . Basically they all shift the same . Try this : disconnect the linkage from the trans to the shifter . Put column shift in park . go underneath and physically put the trans in park . You can tell it's in park by trying to rotate the output shaft . It shouldn't move . Now, adjust the linkage to fit the trans without moving either the column or the trans lever . Now, put the column in "1". Go underneath and disconnect the linkage from trans lever . If trans lever doesn't move , you are done . If it does move you MUST adjust the linkage until you have all the gears . If you don't do this you may wind up with a broken trans . The linkage adjustment may be slightly different in different years but the procedures are the same . You may have pieces of linkage missing . Check that . Unless you have a fully manual valve body you also need to adjust the throttle valve lever that links to the carb . We'll be here to talk you through it . good luck , Tom

 

[discharger1332]

yeah when i got the car he had the shift linkage hooked up to the throttle valve lever and the kickdown linkage was just hanging there. there was no shift lever on the trans at all so i got a B&M lever so that may be an issue as well. may need to find a stock lever.
I have not spent much time messing with it, when i went to push it the other day it would not move in N but rolled free in D. so i figured i would ask here before i spent any time under the car. i need to go over everything the kid did, as from what i am seeing who knows what he did.