CR--Standard removal of the upper (closest to muzzle) handguard is to first remove the gas cylinder. If not match-tuned, the thing will just come forward off the barrel. If match-tuned, the upper handguard will be permanently epoxied to the barrel band. Punch out the roll pin, then bump the barrel band off and the upper handguard comes off with it.
Don't try to remove the barrel band by pulling on the handguard. Match-conditioned upper handguards usually have the metal liner removed, which makes it easy to get a longitudinal crack down the top of the handguard if abused that way.
The lower handguard slides off forward also--the notches in the barrel that the springy thingy snaps into just go forward. I like to start the barrel band off by pushing the bottom of it with fingers/hammer handle, and pushing the top of the band by shoving the lower handguard forward.
The lower handguard can be snapped off and back onto the barrel without removing the barrel band if needed. To get off, use one of those tools for the round hole in a snap-ring, and lift the right side of the springy thingy out of the barrel notch. You might need to hold that side up & out and repeat the exercise for the left side. Once the backside is up, you the lower handguard can come backwards the 1/8-inch or so it takes to get it out of the barrel band.
To put it back on, just insert the front of the handguard into the barrel band, hook the left side of the springy thingy into the barrel groove, and press the springy thingy downward on the barrel until the right side snaps into its groove.
