Kenny, I have no idea why you had to shave your snap ring down. After reading your how-to I was worried that I would have to do the same thing, but I've repacked the bearings twice now and both times the snap ring went back on with no problem....even had a little room to spare on one side.
"The major difference between a thing that might go wrong and a thing that cannot possibly go wrong is that when a thing that cannot possibly go wrong goes wrong, it usually turns out to be impossible to get at or repair."
-Douglas Adams, Mostly Harmless