re-seating CV into differential

[RatLabGuy]

Had to replace a wheel bearing, teh old CV was reeeall ystuck int he hub so I ended up replacing hub/CV? LCA etc. Fun, fun.

Anyway, I'm having trouble getting the new CV to pop all teh way into the differential - the little C-clip on the end of the splined shaft of the CV axle seems to be getting in the way. Yes, its job is, of course, make it hard to get in and out.... add a little friction and snap into an internal ring, so it won't slide around.

Any tricks to this? I get the splines lined up, it slides in a little and stops. Tried putting the big nut on teh end backwards, and punding a little w/ a mallet - but alot of teh force seems to be lost by the CVs bending.
Took the C-clip off, and it slid right in.

 

[RABID_MP5]

is the clip now bent, or does it still look OK? Try greasing the clip? Is there a way to press on the clip as it goes in?

 

[CheeseHelmet]

The open end of the clip must be pointing upwards when you insert the shaft into the diff. Then you simply push until you drop a lung and it'll pop back in =/