steering culumn removal 63 impala

i am changing the sutomatic column in my car to an Ididit one since my car now has a 4 speed. i have everything loose and the column moves around freely but how do i get the column through the firewall and the rubber? grommet around it? the column has all of the shifter linkages and stuff on it, do they come off allowing the column to just slide through everything?

figured someone here could give me a little advise. thanks

 

...should be a plate that screws onto your floor around the column under your carpet, remove that and the column will fit thru the opening.

 

http://www.cl***iccruisincustoms.com/ct1964.html
this a genuine gm manual from bumper to bumper.

 

awesome, thanks guys