After the application of plenty of heat (to melt the little plastic tabs on the smaller shaft where it slides into the larger one) and lots of beating with a big rubber mallet, I got mine to slide rather easily (with liberal application of an aerosol gel lube I have in the toolbox) for about 5-6". The shafts won't seperate, but it will collapse completely, and had more than enough length to fit correctly when installed.mrdrinksalil said:
Wound up actually pulling the steering box out of the donor Jeep, though. Don't know how the hell one gets it in and out without removing those plastic keepers, and I don't think that can be safely done in that Jeep engine bay. She looked pretty tight.
The firewall end connects the exact same as the stock shaft, except that the bolt doesn't go through the center of the shaft. I didn't have anything to grind a groove into the part of the steering column the upper end of the shaft slips over, so I just used a slightly smaller bolt, along with appropriately-sized washers, that didn't hit the column end.
Picture might show it better:
