heres the deal-I swapped my 2.8 for a 350 and put a rebuilt th350 behind the new motor. my question is-is there any way, besides buying a hurst or B&M shifter, to have my stock shifter (from the 2.8) work with the th350 and if so which model year cable do I need? or is this a lost cause and just fork over the $$$ for a B&M?

Can it be done? Probably. I've found that with enough patience and experimentation you can get just about anything to work. All you need to do is make sure that the shifter position corresponds to the manual valve position in the trans. In other words, when the shifter is in 1 you want it in manual position for 1st gear, etc., etc. You just won't use the D position, as this is overdrive, but the trans won't know the difference as it will see 3 as Drive, or top gear.

Have you tried hooking up the stock cable and seeing if it works?

You may need to fabricate a cable with some cable stops, etc., but all that stuff is cheap and easy to come by at an auto parts store, sears hardware, etc. You may be able to modify the stock cable too.