Diamond Medal Comrade challenge (Follow up to No Name Brand Pen Repair)

[Bunk2019]

I finally have all of the parts to get my new-to-me pen working again and sat down this morning to do it but have run into a problem. To recap: The Diamond Medal Comrade I have has a Waterman-style pressure bar but with a little hinge that attaches to a retainer that is lodged in the tail end of the pen barrel. I cannot get the retainer out to reassemble the entire mechanism but I have managed to slip the pressure bar back onto the lever hinges. However, because the retainer is still lodged in the tail of the pen, I cannot slip the pressure bar far enough inside to clear the section when the lever is operated. Should I cut the hinge off the pressure bar to get the necessary depth? Does anyone have any suggestions for removing the retainer? I also can't get the lever out of the barrel. I was able to do it once with the push-down-and-twist method but I can't get it out now and I've tried a couple of techniques.
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[awa54]

A sturdy right angle dental pick with the point ground flat is a great tool for fishing things out of pen barrels. I assume the lever has a "C" ring retaining it? if so, rotating it in the barrel and experimenting with push-n-twist at different points in that rotation will probably get it out, the pick works for this too :D

[Bunk2019]

Thanks! I think that the C-ring is shifted to be higher on one side than the other and thought that might be part of my problem but I couldn't figure out how to move it. I've got a dental pick. Will see what I can manage!

[awa54]

The c-clips usually have sharp edges on the ends and in older pens it can be hard to convince them to rotate, but I've done it more than once before... Depending on the clearance around the lever slot, you can sometimes even maneuver the end of the clip around to the opening and then hook it out of it's slot, depending on the slot depth that is, too deep and the chances of success go down pretty steeply.