Thank you one and all for your advise! I can tell you honestly that the hydrogen peroxide worked, with very little effort. When I said that the pot was covered with a "tar" like coating, that was really an underestimation. It was more as if you took a spray machine and coated the pot with a thick coating of black, hard epoxy. UGH! Imposible as it seemed, I tried the peroxide, only because so many others said that it would work, and it did. Once again, many thanks! ... View related article.