4kQ center differential removal

[Roger Mounsey]

My mechanic has lowered the front of the AW driveshaft on my 86 4kQ and
has removed the 3 bolts from the yolk & the center diff lock rod in
order to replace the center diff bearing, BUT the center diff won't
slide back from the tranny! He's used mild pry force, but the diff comes
back only about 1/8". His affiliated tranny expert claims that the whole
trans has to come out for the diff bearing replacement, but some listers
claim it's only an 1 1/2 hour job. Has my mechanic overlooked anything?
Should he just use more force?  Could a badly damaged bearing cause the
diff to hang up instead of sliding off to the rear? HELP!!!