Trans Appears to be Stuck in Neutral?

[KKMARK]

When replacing the shifter on 1970 vintage sand rail (1600 cc with IRS) noticed that I am not able to get the transmission to engage and any gear. Appears to be stuck in neutral. When manually moving the hokey stick shaft the linkage shifts and appears to move into the appropriate positions but wheels (jacked up) move freely and never lock up the the engine. Looking for advice on what could possibly be wrong.

[cbeck]

Did one of the rear wheel hubs loose its splines? Have some body watch your rear axle nuts while you let the clutch out in 1st gear. If the axle nut spins but not the wheel you found the problem. Try this with the rear wheels/tires on the ground.

[KKMARK]

No,the splines are fine. I can rotate either sides drum or shaft by hand (wheels off) while shifting the trans into various gears. The engine isn't running during any of this.

[woodsbuggy1]

Was something wrong with the shifter you removed? The only shifters that have worked well for me are factory German and Hurst. I tried a Chinese shifter in my buggy for about 5 minutes but couldn't make it work, installed a good factory shifter with correct reverse lock out plate and problems went away.
Good Luck
Kenric