cleaning caked on nasty paint on Paasche VL

I just received in the mail a used Paasche VL double action brush that
I bought on Ebay.
The brush has some  caked on paint in the space between the siphon feed
and the tip.  I have tried to free it with hot water and some small
brushes and a pipe cleaner to no avail.  Can someone tell me if it's
safe to boil the tip or to use a solvent?  Here is a picture I took of
where the problem is at.

http://s24.photobucket.com/albums/c48/RiverMan1/?action=view&current=stencils8inch382.jpg&refPage=&imgAnch=imgAnch1

thank you!

II




ween the point where the siphon feed is at and the end of the needle