first remove the rod hanging down , it seems to me that your converter is locked up from what you have said, when you put it in any gear it is like dumping the clutch at an idle, the kick down cable is not really needed , you can down shift manually , the shifter may not be putting the transmission shifting lever in the right place too. check the torque converter, it also may not have enough stall for the cam you are running , again ... like dumping the clutch, hope this helps you , be safe