OXO Jar Opener Good Grips

I bought this hoping it would help my 86 year old grandma's grip with her arthritis, and it simply did not help her at all. The problem is that beyond twisting, you also need to exert enough force down on the top/at the right angle to just keep the jar opener flat and in contact with the lid you're trying to open. This very simple looking device also seemed to be pretty difficult for my 52 year old mother, who also has very week wrists/hands to use. She could not figure out how to keep the opener from slipping off/sliding over the top of the lids she tested either.I was able to use the opener on the lids we tested just fine, but I also feel that I am probably not the target audience for this product as I generally do not have issues opening things anyway. I ... MoreI bought this hoping it would help my 86 year old grandma's grip with her arthritis, and it simply did not help her at all. The problem is that beyond twisting, you also need to exert enough force down on the top/at the right angle to just keep the jar opener flat and in contact with the lid you're trying to open. This very simple looking device also seemed to be pretty difficult for my 52 year old mother, who also has very week wrists/hands to use. She could not figure out how to keep the opener from slipping off/sliding over the top of the lids she tested either.I was able to use the opener on the lids we tested just fine, but I also feel that I am probably not the target audience for this product as I generally do not have issues opening things anyway. I modified my grip and kept 2 fingers on the top to hold the opener down flat while I twisted, which worked great, but is also not a grip my grandma -and probably much of the target audience- is capable of to make this work.

Will probably work very well for jars, but it's got a sharp serrated metal edge that cuts into plastic. I was looking for an opener for plastic bottles, and this won't fit that bill. To be fair, it's called a 'jar opener'! but I was hoping for something that did more than jars. I've previously had one of a similar design that had rubber edges within the V shape that would open anything.

I own many OXO products, and find the quality and practical value of them well worth the investment. After originally buying the Good Grips Jar Opener for my mother, and seeing how well it worked for her, I bought one for myself. I have small hands and a weak grip, so opening some jars - especially larger sizes - was difficult. No longer. It makes cooking easier when I don't have to struggle with the most basic of food prep. As a line, OXO is durable and well-designed. They may not be the most beautiful kitchen tools I own, though I personally like the bold and whimsical design. But they are among the most often things I reach for in the kitchen.

An option to regain independence despite hand weakness

Enjoy a return to function with Loop Scissors. The self-opening blade allows for a return to a neutral cutting position after closing the blade. Ideal for use for those with arthritic hands or weakness. ~Dr. Kirsten Davin, OTD, OTR/L, ATP, SMS

Best yet

Surprised it worked so well. We have arthritis and opening jars have been painful and frustrating even using hot water and lid tapping methods. This tool works great w/ no strain, no pain or frustration, no hot water, and no lid edge tapping needed. Works better than anything yet and I've been opening jars for sixty years!

Better for some jars than others

I've used this for a few jars and find that it works much better with the thicker plastic lids like those on peanut butter jars than something thin and metal like on a jam jar. There's no rubber or anything on the non-teeth side to help with gripping the lid so it can slide around a bit if you don't get it on just right. It's still easier than opening the jars by hand but you do still have to apply quite a bit of pressure so if you have any hand or wrist problems (I don't, and I still have a hard time opening some jars even with this) it might not work for you at all with some kinds of lids. I'd give this 3.5 stars if I could but since I can't I'm still happy to give it 4 stars because it does help open jars, just not as effortlessly as advertised.

Great for all sizes of jars.

I have Osteoarthritis arthritis and this jar opener is awesome. I no longer have to ask someone to open jars, it has given me back my hands. The base the jar sits on helps so much when using this opener, it is a definite plus that other openers do not offer.

Long term kitchen helper

I had one of these for about 10 years, regularly using it to get jar lids off. Ultimately, when it broke in two trying to get a particularly difficult jar open (the same jar subsequently went on to also break a different jar opener), I didnt feel cheated: it had served me extremely well. Thats why I went back and bought the same thing again. If it serves me for 10 years and opens dozens of jars, I will be well satisfied.

Opening sizes misleading

I bought this specifically because I wanted it to open the large jar of pickles that I buy at Sam's Club. The lid is always on very tight. I can usually open most lids without too much difficulty but not this one. The description of this jar lid opener says it opens lids of all sizes. This is much too small to be able to use to open this lid. In fact, it is not that great on a larger size lid at all. I expected it to work a lot better than it does. I wouldn't have bought it if I had known it would have this limited ability to work on the jars I most wanted it to open.

This jar opener replaced the identical one that was 25 years old.

Because it replaced my "jar opener"that was 25 years old, and I like the name ON IT so I found it easily. Much better than other types.