I just did this last night and I didn't have a paperclip, but had thick wire. I cut piece of wire about 4" long, then bent each end at 90 degrees - sort of like a "U" shape, but longer and straighter. I placed the ends of the wire between chain links to help take tension off the chain, freeing up the links where the master link goes and it made it easier to do the squeeze & push routine. Hope this helps.