No , I had the lower ring wide enough not to catch the lip of the ball joint and the clip off
Some of these little guys are literally rust-welded into place and require torching the a-arm while beating the crap out of it with a hammer and reefing down on the press with a air gun. Sometimes the a-arm needs to taken off and put in a regular shop press to get it out.
I just know when to quit with light duty tools in my garage ...............

 

Just hit it.... Usually I give her a couple hits with a 5 lb hammer, then maybe a few clicks with my MAC air hammer. But generally the BFH does the job. Then as for the "C" press install tool, a good impact and a 19mm impact socket does wonders in driving that new ball joint into the lower control arm.

 

Often it is hung by the rust right at the base. If you have a die grinder with a wire brush - hit it thoroughly to clean it up, then the penetrant. Usually helps. May not for you.