Kinda late to the party but the setup you're talking about will work fine. I've got an old Super Record D and shifters with an 8-speed cluster on my Gianni Motta.

As far as buying some friction shifters - the Dia Compe/Rivendell Silver shifters are pretty sweet . As mentioned there are all sorts of options for old shifters IF YOU CAN FIND THEM. It's not always easy to lay hands on old parts.