Are you supporting the vehicle by the axle tubes or the frame rails? Placing jack stands under the frame allows the springs to relax and increase the distance the housing moves back. If you support the vehicle weight on the axle housing tubes, there will be a considerable amount of down force on the torque tube. Always relax the spring pressure by letting the axle housing hang free. Guide pins are a lot more critical during reinstallation, not transmission removal, to keep the throwout bearing snout on the bearing retainer from being damaged by the weight of the transmission.
Jerry

"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln
Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt!
There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway
Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!