c4 auto trans wont shift into third gear

[rmsample]

4 cyl to 5.0 swap. bought used c4 auto from a reliable source. thought i had the right shift kit for it, had valve body out and turns out the trans is a 64 or 68 i cant remember now. either way i dont have a shift kit for it so i put it back together (no check balls by the way strange?) i have no kick down cable. drive the car in "d" it will shift from 1st to 2nd but not into third. i can manually shift from 1st to 2nd then put into d and it still wont go into third. fluid is full and i filled the torque converter before installing. i did not use the metal rod that was on the trans (because no kickdown i assumed it wasnt neccesary) help!