Not so "Magic Wand"`- gear linkage issues

Hi guys and gals, me and Lady Esme are going to fall out if I don't work this out soon! She's been off the road for a bit with a water leak and a rust only exhaust, finally fixed those issues and now shes developed a funny gear issue. 1st and 3rd are fine but when going for 2nd, 4th and reverse the magic wand hits the floor and the gear won't fully engage (reverse is nearly impossible to achieve. I suspected the engine had dropped and fitted new steady bushes which seemed to cure the problem temporarily but after only about 5 miles of driving it's back to how it was. I've checked that it wasn't just a case of me not doing the steady bolts up tight enough but they are tight and there is no more forward movement to be had. Anybody had this happen or heard of this happening? She's a '64 with the 997 and magic wand style gearstick

Mutstar, just a thought - you say you replaced the exhaust. Perhaps the gearbox to subframe mount or mounts have gone and if you used a jack to hold the exhaust pipe in place while fitting the clamp, you might have moved the engine forward in the subframe. This would cause the gear stick to hit the tunnel before fully engaging 2nd, 4th or reverse. Check if the mounting looks like it is in the correct position, not covering the bolt head. Look at the gap between the front of the subframe and the gearbox casing (below the oil filter) they should be parallel. If not one engine mount shot. Kev