When removing rings, you usually don't want to break them, just in case you have further use for them. This means lifting them out of the groove gently, starting at one end. You lift one of the free ends so it is barely out of the groove, and push it just slightly toward the crown of the piston, as you try to continue to lift further around the ring's circumference. You need to get the ring into a helical shape, and slide it up the piston while keeping it helical. If you don't, it will drop into each ring groove in turn and you'll have to lift it out over and over again, which as a way to spend your time, gets old pretty quickly (especially if its a V8 rather than a single cylinder). So, you lift the end, slip a thin steel shim under the lifted end, and work the shim progressively around the ring as you push more of it toward the piston crown in that helical shape. Be sure the "lead" of the helix is as small as possible, or you may permanently twist the ring and ruin its sealing performance.
