Bending the sideplate "ear" out a bit creates tention against the takedown lever, once it starts rotating and locking itself into the frame. It is unusual to find a lever that is this loose once you have addressed all the issues you describe. The only thing that comes to mind is to try a different lever to see if that functions normally.
Your original lever may have been buffed just past "spec" by a factory worker, thus making it always a loose fit.
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