A faster option yet
I took my '83 shifter out and cut out 1 3/4" out of it, ground the ends beveled, bolted it in a vice and welded it back together. In my shifter it worked perfect, and there was virtually no buildup to grind down because I beveled it back far enough. The whole thing took less than an hour from the time I started to pull the console to the time it went back in with the short shifter in. It shifts and feels great. The only thing is that you have to push the rubber boot down a bit at the base so the lip rides under the console peice and trim a bit of the rubber lip off the top to keep the boot from buckling and looking ugly.