Steering Column Shaft

Started putting the cj6 together. I have been laying the parts out to see what needs to be replaced. All these years sitting in the garage I never removed the steering wheel from the column. I discovered the shaft was welded to a nut and the steering wheel.

I cut the welded areas off and removed the steering wheel from the shaft. I don't think this is the correct steering wheel.
I think I can weld to the shaft to be able to have a thread for a nut to hold the steering wheel.

How do I remove the "contact" (copper sleeve around the shaft) from the column?
I need to know the length of the shaft. I don't think thread size is that important.

Any suggestions?