Ok, so we have all either done this, and hated it, OR are dreading starting it. I looked at many different approaches, slide hammer, beating the axle shaft, etc. Here is my take. Clearly some things are required, here are my steps

1. Put truck in 4WD
2. Loosen lug nuts, drivers side
3. Set parking brake
4. Jack up drivers side, set two jack stands (safety first!)
5. Remove drivers side wheel
6. Remove 6 bolts from cv shaft attaching it to axle stub
7. Pull back and push down below axle shaft

Note, I did not remove the suspension, and the cv shaft is still attached at the bearing.

8. Attach a slide hammer adapter to the axle stub, but NOT the rod or hammer
9 .I took a short 2x4, about two feet long. Drilled a 5/8 inch hole through it. The whole was in the path of where the slide hammer rod would go.
10. Get a 12 in section of 1/2 inch threaded rod, with 3 nuts and 3 washers.
11. Slide threaded rod through 2x4 and bolt to both the plate and also the 2x4.
12. Using a tie down, put the board under tension away from the axle stub. I wrapped mine around the knuckle.
13. Beat the daylights out of the back of the adapter plate. I used a 1 ft long 2x4 with a 2lb hammer. Took about 15 minutes.

See the pictures for some illustration as to the setup. The main idea is to prevent the clip from reseting each time you strike with the hammer. This way, any progress you make is SAVED.

Picture to follow

Here are pics of the setup. I hope its clear how this works. The top of the board is braces against the frame.