Thanks for the suggestion, and thanks to Dave too. I was reluctant to go the "one half at a time" route because of the possibility of dirtying the clean half with crud from the dirty half. I managed to get all the pistons out with the strategically placed piece of wood (note to self: remember to leave enough overhang to be able to pull the wood from between the pistons when they are gripping it). It was the channel locks and a vice grip that saved the day. A lot of wiggling and some patience and...job done.

Thank you Ron and thank you Brickboard.

Warren