Dripping tap so thinking to quickly replace the cartridge. But, I’ve removed the grub screw completely – it’s half way down the handle on the underside – and assumed the handle would slide off.

But no … I’ve tried sliding by hand, prising with a large screwdriver blade, sliding and rotating, unscrewing (both ways) – it feels like it’s still firmly secured. No sign of any other retaining screws, clips … I feel like an idiot! What am I missing???

Not my tap by the way 😉

[url=https://flic.kr/p/2kVXgsT]20210430_175158[/url] by aus23, on Flickr

They can get a real bite on the splines. Towel and pipe wrench

If the grub screw is out then it needs a sharper tug sir. They can get really gunged on with limescale and/or corrosion.
I’d give it a tap on the head with a soft faced hammer to try and break the gunge. Be careful, some naff tap tops are made of chromed plastic.
An alternative is to load it up with the screwdriver as you did before, then tap the head from each side to break the gunge.
Good luck, and don’t forget this is why most plumbers would replace the whole tap.

I’ve the same problem and I’m tending to a new tap
By the time I’ve struggled to get to the stage of swapping out washers I’ll probably have spent too much time and perhaps have broken something.

It’s an interesting comparison between DiY and plumber; the plumber’s time is more valuable so a new tap is cheaper than faffing, provided the pipework underneath is accessible. DiY, you can keep faffing until there’s a risk of breaking something but there are consequences for domestic harmony in having no tap while you source a replacement, or worse having to turn the water off altogether. So you buy a new tap in case it breaks, and then you may as well fit it.

Assuming it’s metal, I’d use something like the below to grip it tight and then tap the body of the tool to try ease it off.

https://www.eurocarparts.com/p/masterpro-rubber-strap-oil-filter-wrench-6-inch-538770251

You can get loads of grip with one of these, provided the surface is relatively smooth, dry and grease free.

Moving it around the tap and tapping should free it.

Having said that, I’d have probably twatted a screwdriver in it, tried to prise it off, gripped it and wiggled the whole tap loose before finally buying a new tap as the existing is now smashed to bits and so bent that it wouldn’t go back together anyway 😉

Our kitchen mixer tap was so seized it ended up in the workshop vice, still no joy. In the end I replaced the whole thing as the only way I could get the old cartridges out was to angle grind the crap out of the thing. Was about 18 years old mind, so had a good innings.

For £29 Screwfix do a trade rated kitchen mixer. You’ll probably pay more than that for a fancy cartridge.

In my experience and as mentioned above, taps get clogged with calcium and once they start playing up, replacement is more cost effective. Once an old tap is disassembled, those deposits preventing other leaks are disturbed, rubber washers crumble and you can end up chasing your tail.

Get yourself some Rothenburger monoblock tap spanners while you’re there and hope that the nut underneath isn’t seized solid!

Thanks all – a replacement tap would be the way to go but it’s bonded to the sink, with the metal supply pipes going directly into the tap, and the shape of the sink means access is very poor underneath … I’m not keen to try!

But got the handle off, altho the cartridge was limescale stuck to it so snapped the head. Grrrr. Just trying to find out where to get a replacement or what the cartridge type is … push fit with a locking nut.

[url=https://flic.kr/p/2kWfbv6]20210502_102056[/url] by aus23, on Flickr