on my 86 the heater feel very restricted when i switch it to the floor. i see there is what appears to be a filter where the recirc vent is but im not sure how to access it. any helpful hints before i rip apart my dash??

There are no filters.

You probably need to take apart the dash and remove the heater box assembly and disassemble it and clean out the heater core.  Leaves and crap comes in through the cowl vents and get down on top of the heater core and when the blower tries to blow hot air through the core, it is restriced and you won't get much air flow through it.

Some people drill a large hole up above the heater core in the side of the heater box and use a vacuum to suck out the leaves and crap from off the top of the heater core.  That works good for removing the stuff from on top of the heater core, but there is likely a bunch of crap in the fins of the core and the only way to get it out is to take everything apart, so you can vacuum, blow, or wash out the heater core fins.

Most heater cores that are several years old have significant mold growths. I consider it as essential to clean up as moldy carpet etc. All the work to clean up a older vehicle goes down the drain as soon as you turn the heater blower on and mold spores are blown into the freshly cleaned interior to grow all over again!

I drilled the hole in the side the same size as the front drain holes and used a drain hole plug to plug it, I Vacuumed it out then used an air hose to blow it out to clean the fins. Much easier than pulling the heater box