Blade guard will not retract from full closed position. It must be assisted by hand

Simple question, is there something inside of the blade and the blade guard blocking its use? Sometimes a piece of wood or plastic lodges itself in between and is hard to see.

Sound like a piece of wood may have driven the arm up which operates the guard, if you remove the screws holding the guard support plate to the saw you should be able to remove the guard assembly, the arm can then be re-bent down on the end so that it meets the angled plate on the back of the guard and pushes the guard through the entire stroke, the other reason could be a damaged guard, when the centre screw is removed the plates can be removed from the guard, note how the spring and plates are assembled prior to dismantling, check the inside centre of the perspex guard and ensure the 4 protrusions which engage with the drive plate haven't broken off, if sow the guard will need to be replaced, this may now be an obsolete part , if so purchase a Makita guard as they are the same

I think what you are refering to is a circlip washer , and can only be
fitted with ( CIRCLIP PLIERS ) do you know any Michanics or Engineers as they are bound to have a set in their toolbox ,on the other hand you
can buy them. What they do is work in the opposit way normal pliers do
when you squees the handles together the jaws open,therefor opening
the (CIRCLIP ) and allowing you to place it over the pin and into the
recess. Hope this has been of some hellp goodluck T.C.

check for broken return spring or bent guard hitting the sides of the machine.

I don't have this particular model in my shop right now but almost all circular saws work like this. From the blade side of the saw, the spring attaches to a hole in the blade guard usually around the two to three o'clock position. With the blade guard correctly positioned on the saw, wrap the spring clockwise around the bottom of the hub and back up the nine o'clock side. There is another hole or tab inside the top of the upper blade guard somewhere around the twelve to two o'clock position. Hook the end of the spring there and test the guard for free movement throughout it's range of motion.

Probably something jammed up inside the body of the saw where the guard retracts, like a chip of wood. I once had the same problem with my circular saw guard not retracting. Turned out there was a screw that had somehow gotten trapped in there and once that was removed, guard functions perfectly now. Definitely sort it out as soon as possible because this is very dangerous--you could make a cut, rest the saw on your leg and... earn a quick trip to the emergency room.

Remove the battery, take the blade back off and you will see the holes for the torsion spring. what you will have to do is start putting lower guard on but pretenstion the spring so it will fit back into the proper holes, it might be a benefit to remove the small bumper so that you can move the guard more. when installing the blade you don't remove the lower guard just retract it and slide the blade in place. Usually there is a retaining ring to hold the guard in place but I looked at a breakdown and didn't see one. Let me know if you need more assistance before voting please. Thank you

Removing the Blade
1. Unplug the saw.
2. Raise the arm to the upper position and raise the lower guard as far as possible.
3. Loosen, but do not remove guard bracket screw until the bracket can be raised far
enough to access the blade screw. Lower guard will remain raised due to the position
of the guard bracket screw.
4. Depress the spindle lock button (Fig. 3) while carefully rotating the saw blade by hand
until the lock engages
5. Keeping the button depressed, use the other hand and
the wrench provided to loosen the blade screw. (Turn
clockwise, left-hand threads.)
6. Remove the blade screw, outer blade clamp, and
blade. The inner blade clamp may be left on the
spindle.
Installing a Blade
1. Unplug the saw.
2. With the arm raised, the lower guard held open and the
guard bracket, place the blade on the spindle against
the inner blade clamp with the teeth at the bottom of
the blade pointing toward the back of the saw.
3. Assemble the outer blade clamp onto the spindle.
4. Install the blade screw and, engaging the spindle lock,
tighten the screw firmly with wrench provided. (Turn
counterclockwise, left-hand threads.)
5. Return the guard bracket to its original position and
firmly tighten the guard bracket screw to hold bracket
in place.
WARNING:
• The guard bracket must be returned
to its original position and the
screw tightened before activating
the saw.
• Failure to do so may allow the guard
to contact the spinning saw blade
resulting in damage to the saw and
severe personal injury
you can download a manual at: http://www.dewalt.com/tools/machinery-miter-saws-dw713.aspx

Push the saw down and manually hold the guard while it is the retracted position and let up on saw while holding guard,you should
be able to put in wrench and loosen bolt.

Double position trimmers For extended reach while on the ground, a double position trimmer avoids you having to climb up high by allowing you to adjust the handle into a right angle to the blades for a level cut across the top of the hedge. Clippings collector As you trim your hedge, collect those stray cuttings in a clippings collector for a neater finish. Automatic cut out An important safety feature, this automatically switches off the hedge trimmer once the trigger is released. Hand guard For reassuring safety, a hand guard will protect you from the moving blades and from falling cuttings as you work.