edited.....

[busyychild]

Edited......

[brad black]

assume you make the beast with two backsed up and pull the cover again.  that's what i'd do.  you need to look inside at the return springs and generally what you could have touched.  are the dowels in their holes?  if not it might be offset.

[ducpainter]

Check to see that the screw in the clevis that attaches to the shift shaft is not rubbing on the case and binding.

[ducpainter]

Are you referring to the gear change lever pin (15)? Only thing I can see that resembles a clevis.

No, I'm talking about the clevis that clamps to the shaft on the outside of the case.

If it's oriented a few splines in the wrong direction it can rub on the case.

[SpikeC]

 Now, I don't want to come across as a dick(who me??) but I wish that you would not refer to removing the alternator cover as "splitting the case"! It gives me heeby jeebies to think that a sticky shifter would require splitting the cases!
Thank you very much, and now continue searching for a solution to your problem.
As a man once said, "when a problem arises, look to what you last did".