headliner woes....

[Josh D]

Just bought a super clean '88 GW to add to my Jeep fleet (pictures to post as soon as I get my login from fullsizejeeps.com). Anyways, the headliner fabric is starting to separate from the foam. Whats the recommended fix? I checked the archives and most those repairs delt with replacing the foam. It would seem easier to just re-glue the fabric onto the foam (if its still in good shape). Any ideas for something easy?

[SpruceMoose]

thumb tacks ;)

by far the easiest fix. possibly the ugliest also. methinks you will need to tear out all the old foam/fabric and get new stuff. i did that, and while i had the entire headliner out (cardboard and all) i glued some 1" thick felt to the roof. nice and quiet now.

check it out:

http://www.fsjworld.com/showownerpic.ten?u=3294&n=77142&pos=1&album=6531

caution: dark glasses recommended.

sm.

[Josh D]

Wow! Colorful. Not exactly what I had in mind though. I guess I'll have to pull it out and take a better look at the condition of the foam. Thanks for the input. Anyone else?

[scott f]

I pulled the old headliner off and got some new headliner material at the upholstry shop. It takes about 3 yards at $13/yd. Very easy to do.
Costs you about $50

[Quartermaster]

Read the write-up in the "Technical" section under "Interior". No matter how much glue you use, the fabric will fall unless you replace the foam (which used to be part of the fabric). I learned the hard way but got pretty good at removing the card board backing.

[gopack]

Is it really that easy to change the headliner? I got a price quote here for $165.00, and think it may be worth the $'s just to have a professional do it for me. But now if it is an easy job that I can do and it still look good, then I'll give it a try.

[Matthew W. Woodruff]

I started on this project last weekend. The cloth will probably separate from its foam backing pretty easily. (You will have to pick apart some stitching and the edges of the backerboard though.)

Ugly part is scraping the foam off the backerboard. I found that it came off pretty easily where it had gotten wet and begun to deteriorate; not so easy where it was still in good shape.

I used a big putty knife and a razor blade paint scraper. Leaves behind a gluey residue which I will either sand off or leave there.

I have no confidence in my ability to replace the cloth without wrinkling or stretching it, so I will probably just prep the replacement backerboards and take them to an upholstery shop.

[Damage, Inc.]

WOW!! When did you move to NM? I was just driving through your neck of the woods (Palmer Lake) last weekend and realized you ain't been on in quite awhile...

[heep]

Originally posted by Quartermaster108:
Read the write-up in the "Technical" section under "Interior". No matter how much glue you use, the fabric will fall unless you replace the foam (which used to be part of the fabric). I learned the hard way but got pretty good at removing the card board backing.Where is this write-up you mention smile.gif I can't seem to find it.

Thanks

[Rick@battlement]

I found a brick layers wire brush(3"x6"). Once the fabric was removed I used the shop vac attachment to scrap away most of the foam. (turn on shop vac to help keep mess cleaned up). Then I used the wire brush to remove the remaining foam from the cardboard. The whole process took less than 1 hour. I am wondering about spraying contact glue through my binks gun. The 3M glue is 20 bucks a can.

[scott taylor]

i just use 1-1/2" sheet metal screws every 6"... oh sure it goes straight through the roof but it keeps kids and cats off my rig... =)

[imported_Big Red]

I repaired or should I say replaced mine. Yes you must remove the fabric and then remove the foam. The wire brush or a stiff scrub brush will work. You can purchase your material locally or off the net. Mine was about $30. Go with 3.5 to 4 yards. Use an electric palm sander and run it across the sticking stuff left on the cardboard. The use the 3M heavy duty spray adhesive. Make sure to leave about a 1/4 inch extra all the way around. Over time it will shrink a bit. Just tuck the extra in the channels. Do not worry about wringles. It is very easy to do!

[LRRH]

The 3M glue is 20 bucks a can.And worth every penny. Buy the best you can find. Otherwise...you can do the whole job over again in a few months.

It is an easy repair though......

[Scottf]

When I did my headliner I found the hardest part was putting the headliner back and screwing in the front and rear moldings. I got my fabric from a fabric store for about 9 bucks a yard. I also used 2 or 3 cans of carpet spray adhesive from the local "super hardware store" (Menards) for about 4 bucks a can. So far I have had no problems, but lets wait and see after a few seasons change.

Spruce Moose, love the headliner!! Wish I had thought of something cool like that. I just replaced with the same color headliner material.

[SpruceMoose]

scottf: thanx! whenever i fix something on the wag i am never satisfied to just bring it back to stock. i always seem to upgrade. or at least customize it.

sm.

[letank]

i used the $20 can ,,,, and after a few summer... it started to sag.... so i used a stappler......

Cheers

Michel

[Bluesky4x4]

What is the correct way to remove the headliner? Do you bend down the rail that holds it in, or just pop the headliner up and out?

[Poley]

rip all of you interior out seats, headliner, and carpet; then go and get Rhino lining sprayed in.... just my two cents worth, but kinda pricey..

[imported_Big Red]

Pop it up and out then out the rear.

[will e]

My wife had the headliner replaced for me with the vinyl stuff that has the little holes in it. It wipes off easy and looks good too:

http://www.fullsizejeeps.com/jeeps/files/1963-1983-Wagoneers/willeheadliner.jpg

[ September 06, 2003, 12:29 AM: Message edited by: will e ]

[79_Limited]

I know this is an old post but I just had an experience I wanted to share.

I removed the headliner myself. It took me about an hour or so.

I took the cardboard backings to a upholstery shop. They scraped the old foam and recovered for $80. I would have had close to this in materials and supplies so it was worth it to me to have the shop do it for the hassle factor.

I am about to install the headliner myself so I will see how it goes.

I was quoted anywhere from $175 - $225 for the whole job so I think I saved a lot by doing the install myself.

One thing I did that the shop would not do is I sprayed the roof with 3M rubberized spray. Thanks to Sitting Bulls recommendation and guidance I will not have a quieter ride= for very little $$$.

This took several hours because I had to prep and tape everything but the results look good.

Once it dries I will reinstall the new headliner (probably next weekend).

[DBSINWI]

I have the same problem with my '86. After talking with the local interior shop, they say most of your cost is labor in just taking the headliner out and putting it back in. If you can do that yourself, and haul it over to an interior shop just to have them recover it, it'll save you a whole lot of money. That's the way I'm going, and they quoted me less than $90 as opposed to about $200 if they did everything. Food for thought.

[mdill]

The problem is not with the head liner material it
is with the foam, as the foam brakes down, the
fabric will fall. Trying to glue to the foam will
only make a mess as the new fabric will be stuck
to disitgrating foam. The easiest way I found to
remove the foam, was to use the palm of my hand to
rub it off. The whole job, with my 10year old's
help took 4 hours, most of that was cleaning off the
foam. (One can of spray glue, is just enough if
you are carefull)

Mike D.

[79_Limited]

Originally posted by mdill:
The problem is not with the head liner material it
is with the foam, as the foam brakes down, the
fabric will fall. Trying to glue to the foam will
only make a mess as the new fabric will be stuck
to disitgrating foam. The easiest way I found to
remove the foam, was to use the palm of my hand to
rub it off. The whole job, with my 10year old's
help took 4 hours, most of that was cleaning off the
foam. (One can of spray glue, is just enough if
you are carefull)

Mike D.See that is what I am talking about. I saved myself 4 hours of work, did not have to deal with the mess and did not have to recover it. I was only out of pocket $80.

Sometimes it pays the pros to do part of the work.

[Fornesto]

I am seriosly considering the Duraback, Rhino Lining solution. I will never have to think twice about shoving fishing poles, 2 x 4s, cornerbead, branches, or any other headliner destroyers into the back of the rig. I've yet to avoid those stripes in the headliner.

[jfiscus]

I haven't attempted reinstalling a headliner in my jeep, but my headliner appears to be made of textured cardboard without any fabric on top. I repainted it with black paint and it looks good, but still sags.

I replaced the fabric headliner in an 82 Cadillac Deville just before some drunk a-hole totalled it. I had to cut the headliner in half to get it our of the car and rig up my own center support to support it once I got it back in.

I pulled off the old dangling fabric and wet the old foam stuff, wiped it off with a sturdy cloth and scraped the rough spots with an ice scraper, then applied about 4 coats of spraypaint that matched the car's body color. Cost me about $8 in spraypaint and $5 for a small trimboard piece at Lowes.

I hardly ever look up at the ceiling and think it's a really easy really cheap way to go. Also, a week later the car was totalled and the insurance estimator was nitpicking the car and said that the headliner was in great shape.

Autozone also sells headliner replacement fabric as an alternative to going to a fabric/upholstery shop, but I think it's kind of pricy and you'd probably need 2 kits to do a FSJ.

[ckb]

I messed with several options on my 90 GW. Finally I just shelled out the 140$ at a local shop to do the job. 4 hours later, like new. I think it was a good bang for the buck. The foam/fabric, once bad is almost impossible to make stay up. These guys gave me new clothes hangers, door handles and lock pull tops included. Looks like OEM stuff.