Tire release lever on brake not working correctly

I have a dual pivot calliper brake on the front of my bike. The bolts had some surface rust, so I decided to take it all apart and wire brush the rust off.

It's back together now, and it does stop the wheel when I squeeze the brake.

But the tire release lever does not open the brake, it makes it even tighter. I was pretty sure that I put it back together correctly, but I obviously haven't.

Does anyone know how I can fix this? it's not a huge deal, if I need my wheel off I can still just yank it out, but it is annoying me knowing that something on my bike isn't how it should be.

If the lever makes it tighter then it sounds like you had it in the wrong position when you set the cable tension. Loosen the cable off, move the lever to the position that makes it closer to the rim, then tension the cable again.

That didn't change anything.

I'm actually considering buying a new brake (probably cheaper than taking it to bike shop) 😂 because I intend to go up a tire size soon. I can yank my 25mm out and shove it back in, but a 28mm wont fit through the brake pads without the lever working properly.

The tyre release lever works by moving the bolt that holds the brake cable upwards, to move the brake pads away from the rim, like undoing the cable tensioner in one go. In reverse, the cable bolt is moved down, moving the brake pads towards the rim again. I think you have assembled the cam that moves the cable upside down so it does the opposite of what it should.