1990mudslut

OK so,I have a 1990 ext toyota pickup.sr5 package with the 3.0 v6 and auto tranny 4x4.

I bought the truck almost a year ago from a guy out of state at a price even a slow person wouldnt refuse.The truck has always been great with only two problem I can't stand.The severe bouncing from the tires.And the loose gear shifter,It has never cuased any problem but Ive just got tired of it and want to fix it before it causes a wreck.

So,two days ago I begin to start breaking it down the diagnose the problem,Well I found the problem,the bolt that holds the gear shifter steady and supports it was missing!I was absolutly stunned to find what he used the hold the shifter in place.He stuck a 16 penny nail through it to hold it in place.I want to remove it and put the right size bolt through it however I can't figure out how to remove the entire shifter.I want to remove it from the tranny to get it completely out of the truck to work on it.How would i go about doing this?Do I have to drop the enitre tranny to get it out?