kz550 fork tear down

I want to take apart the forks on my kz550 to learn more about how they work and also to replace the fork seals, but I've never done this before on a fork. How do you get the circlip out of the top? I know I have to push in the cap to expose the circlip, but that leaves almost no room to get a tool in, to pull out the ring.

Any help/advice would be appreciated.

I guess I'd use an awl & try prying the circlip at one of the ends. It may help to have a helper pressing down on the fork cap.
Keep in mind that the fork cap is under spring pressure & may go flying when the circlip is removed.

92033-1023 CIRCLIP,FORK TOP