I let it cool off some and got a rag and just pulled mightily until it finally popped free, spraying oil everywhere. My 540 came originally with the longer filters and no plastic center rod that kind of "screws" the filter down into the cnister. I converted it to the newer design because the long filters were getting hard to find. On the 540 the filter always comes out with the cap. The 740 seems to force the filter further down into the canister and it is really hard to get out. I did tear part of the filter off the plastic end piece, but my fear was I'd get part of it off and not be able to get the rest out. Thankfully, that didn't happen. Thanks for the help.