HD carrier bearing conversion

[nxtruck]

Guys,

This may sound like a stupid question, but, how are you supposed to get the front shaft in place when using the HD-style carrier bearing in these trucks? I'm converting from a 1-piece back to a 2-piece shaft because of vibration issues and cannot figure out how to get the front shaft in place. When the slip yoke is slid up as far as it will go, the center of the carrier bearing hits the center crossmember. No matter how I've held my mouth, I can't seem to figure out a way to get it in there. I took this shaft out of a '68 C-20 and it had a bolt-on front yoke instead of a slip yoke at the trans and I'm wondering if all the trucks that used the HD bearing also had bolt-on yokes at the trans.

Any ideas out there?