I've got more than a few Tamiya and Gunze Sangyo (Mr paints....) where the lids of the pots are effectively welded onto the pot. There's NO way I can grip them strongly enough to 'UN-weld' them currently, and I've tried the can gripper things and the 'Jam it in a door hinge' technique, they just won't move.

Does anyone had a sure fire technique to get the ruddy things off please? I really don't want to have to buy new pots when the old ones are 3/4 full.

A grinder.  It's the go-to tool for everything.  At least according to the Project Binky guys.

When I used to have really stuck on caps/lids for Testor and Tamiya bottles of paint, I would sometimes hold them under hot water from the faucet for several minutes to help loosen them. After several minutes of being under the hot water, I would then take a pair of channel lock pliers or a towel and twist off the lid. Worked pretty good for me years ago before I switched to Vallejo paints.

I've tried the hot water thing already, but not for very long. I'll have another go for longer, thanks.

The grinder comes later..............

And then once you do get the lids off, then take some thinner or whatever other solution you have and wipe around the edge of the bottle and also remove any excess paint inside the cap. That will help prevent the lids from getting stuck in the future.

use a spatula  or similar thin non cutty thing gently insert under the base of the lids and lift slightly from the glass shoulder of the jar,  a drop of appropriate thinners may also help,  its something ive had to do a few times as well,  then as Seadude says clean the treads on both the jar and lid and the top of the jar as well.

Quote from: The Wooksta! on January 01, 2025, 09:00:29 AMA grinder.  It's the go-to tool for everything.  At least according to the Project Binky guys.

Dont forget the bespoke bracket that will be required to hold the lid in place afterwards.......

For acrylics, I put the can upside down and squirt some solvent (denatured alcohol/methylated spirits) into the gap between the lid and the bottle and wait 10-15 minutes. The lid will come off easily, or with some help from pliers. If it doesn't I repeat the process with acetone,

Quote from: frank2056 on January 01, 2025, 11:35:29 AMFor acrylics, I put the can upside down and squirt some solvent (denatured alcohol/methylated spirits) into the gap between the lid and the bottle and wait 10-15 minutes. The lid will come off easily, or with some help from pliers. If it doesn't I repeat the process with acetone,

I've had good results with this, myself.
Hope you find something that works, Kit.

LOTS of ideas there, thanks gentlemen, I'll give them a go. 

Quote from: frank2056 on January 01, 2025, 11:35:29 AMFor acrylics, I put the can upside down and squirt some solvent (denatured alcohol/methylated spirits) into the gap between the lid and the bottle and wait 10-15 minutes. The lid will come off easily, or with some help from pliers. If it doesn't I repeat the process with acetone,

Sainsbury's nail polish remover is only £1.50 for 250ml.   It's basically acetone "enriched with Pro Vitamin B5 and Vitamin E"  but Rheged minor has used it successfully in the past for bottle top loosening duties.  His advice is "Give it reasonable time to work!"

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My go to, wrap a couple of layers of electrical
tape around the jaws if you don't want to
mar the lid. The most important thing is to
always wipe of mouth of the jar and the threads before putting the lid back on.

If all else fails there's always the Ridgid Model 60.


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I had one of them in the stores at MTS UK!

We needed it on more than one occasion too! 

I put the pot in a container of thinners, upside down so the lid was totally submerged, and it's been there all night.

No effect whatsoever, the lid's STILL welded on!