I detail family/friends car for fun but have come across something I haven't had to deal with before. Somehow they managed to get ink from a ball point pen on the headliner and I'm not 100% sure how to go about removing it. I know I need to be careful with headliners and don't want to saturate the material for fear of causing it to sage. However, it being ink I'm also afraid of just smearing it and making the problem worse. Anyone have experience with this? My idea is to mist with 303 Fabric cleaner and a light brush to agitate the ink. Followed up by 303 on a MF towel and wipe the headliner clean. Suggestions would be great since I have someone breathing down my neck to get this figured out.
IME nothing really gets ink out and your right harsh chemicals shouldn't go on the headliner. It most likely will need to be professionally dyed.
I'd suggest using a cleaner designed for such stain removal. With the ink being on the headliner you're going to be limited on what you can use since it can't be extracted like most fabrics...I'd maybe even call Jon-Don and see what they suggest. This looks like a possible option though... http://www.jondon.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=9128
You need to get a solvent that will remove it, if you choose unwisely.........you may set the stain more solidly. As to the exact solvent, what kind of Ink is it........water or alcohol based? Did you try to dab it with a bit of water? It is likely then Alcohol based, and you will blot it. Cheers, GREG
