how to remove a faucet's decorative cover

[jhammond_1999]

I have a dripping faucet and I'm trying to replace the valve on the hot side. I am having trouble removing the decorative cover (brushed nickel) that covers the nut that allows you to take the valve out. I was afraid to pry too hard at the base or I might damage the cover. Is there a trick to getting it off? The brand is American Heritage (i think). See the attached photo.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Caduceus]

Maybe Kingston Brass Heritage? Anyways, try gripping it firmly and spinning it counter clockwise. It may be threaded onto the valve body. I believe the escutcheon stays in place. Corrosion and scaling could make it difficult, so you might need to get a grip on the valve body beneath the sink so that you don't spin the whole thing.
Sometimes penetrating oil and a strap wrench are needed if it's real bad.
Maybe you r faucet looks something like this?

 

[jhammond_1999]

Good Answer! The strap wrench and a faucet wrench underneath did the trick. I just wanted to be sure that a counter-clockwise turn was what was needed because it was going to require a lot of torque and I didn't want to try to force it if it was suppose to come off some other way. I bought a package of two strap wrenches from Harbor Freight for $5. I knew they were cheap but I knew i would probably only use them once. Sure enough, the first strap wrench broke, so I used the second one and was able to put enough torque on it to get it off.

Thanks!