I'm in the process of rebuilding mine. There is a good YouTube video out there. I ended up buying a spare shifter as a reference, just in case. I may make a video or a detailed description of my rebuild.
I've studied the mechanism, and it is clever, but faulty in its crudeness. It is highly susceptible to binding due to friction, corrosion, sharp edges, or bent plates.
Here are some steps I'm taking in my rebuild;
1) I double checked the assembly to make sure there were no missing parts and that it was assembled correctly. You never know what the PO may have done.
2) A full cleaning of all parts in a heavy-duty degreaser
3) Check to makes sure all plates are flat and slide freely with neighboring plates. Any friction/nicks between plates gets amplified in the mechanism and can cause a very stiff shift lever. I used a small polishing disc on an air drill to smooth all sharp edges and smooth any surface defects on the plates
5) Make sure the slot that the detent pin rides in is smooth. I noticed there were minor surface defects that needed to be smoothed out.
6) For both corrosion resistance and reduced friction, I'm having the plates Cerakote coated. I will still use a lubricant between the plates, but the cerakote will improve surface lubricity and prevent corrosion.
7) Detent Pin Spring: The detent pin spring is very heavy. I purchased a few alternate springs from McMaster Carr with ~80%, 70%, and 60% of the spring rate. This way, I can test the shift feel with the different detent pin spring forces. I've assembled/disassembled the shifter many times to learn how it works and why it was giving me trouble. Eventually, you get good at it, and it becomes easy to do without looking at the video. Holding the assembly in a vise using the flange that mounts to the T-case (don't squeeze the assembly), it allows you to test the shifter outside the truck.
Another note:
There is a tube/sleeve that the plates pivot about. One of the plates is very thin (~.020") and it has a u-shape that fits around this sleeve, not a round hole. During assembly, it is very easy to pinch this plate between the sleeve and the shifter housing. This would prevent this plate from moving freely, and would make shifting very difficult. It is very easy to do and almost impossible to see that it is wrong. The rest of the assembly is not finnicky. You just need to get the order correct.
I'm also trying to get the 4X4 indicator switch working. I wasn't able to find an original style switch, so I found one from a late model that looks like it may work. There may be some slight modifications needed, but I'm still working on it. Details to follow.
Switch: Dorman #600-552
Harness: Standard Motor Products #S712
I bought both from Amazon.
I'll be dropping the parts off for Cerakote this week and hope to have them back next week. I'll then do a write up on the assembly with pics.