Headliner Glue!!!

[Rusty1]

When I bought rusty the headliner was gone but the backing was still in place. I pulled the backing, cleaned it with a wire brush, bought new headliner material and used spray adhesive my wife had to install it. It all looked good for a few months. Then the new material started to sag.

I pulled out the headliner. Carefully peeled the material off without damaging it. Used Scotch 77 on the backer and the material and smoothed it all out again. That was 2 weeks ago and it is starting to sag AGAIN. What the hell am I doing wrong?! Do I need to wait longer for the glue to dry a little before mating the 2 together?

I'm going to let it go until it falls apart as much as possible and try it one more time

 

[89Suburban]

I used the 3M Spray Adhesive #78, worked great.

 

[bucket]

Did the headliner board turn fuzzy when you cleaned the old foam off?

 

[MrMarty51]

The wifey has a 88 crusty the clown buick century,the headliner has fallen down in it.
I split a part of it openm so I could squirt some spray adhesive around on the backing,in a few days it too had fallen and was dragging on Mine bald head so I took staples and bumped a bunch of staples in it and now it stays in place real goood,I even got sort of fancy and give it the
Diamond Pleat" affect.

 

[bucket]

The wifey has a 88 crusty the clown buick century,the headliner has fallen down in it.
I split a part of it openm so I could squirt some spray adhesive around on the backing,in a few days it too had fallen and was dragging on Mine bald head so I took staples and bumped a bunch of staples in it and now it stays in place real goood,I even got sort of fancy and give it the
Diamond Pleat" affect.

Lol, I've went for the diamond pleated look before too. So you have an A-body, eh? I didn't know that... have any pictures?

 

[MrMarty51]

Lol, I've went for the diamond pleated look before too. So you have an A-body, eh? I didn't know that... have any pictures?

I think in My camera phone I do,it is in the house on the charger,when it comes off I`ll see,if not, I`ll get some in the moooorning.

 

[RetroC10Sport]

Lol, I've went for the diamond pleated look before too. So you have an A-body, eh? I didn't know that... have any pictures?

Bucket, 89S and I are the resident A body nuts. I liked the Century I had for a while. 1986 T-Type sedan.

 

[MrMarty51]

Bucket, 89S and I are the resident A body nuts. I liked the Century I had for a while. 1986 T-Type sedan.

OOOOHHhh Yeah,I`ve a chance to pick up on a complete and rust free ,about a 85,Riveara for 500.00,I also have a 3.8 turboed engine I would lioke to put into it.Any thoughts on the matter maby should be brought out in a new thread.
I`ll go an look, see if there be a Buick thread.

 

[Rusty1]

this is a chevy truck forum?

 

[MrMarty51]

this is a chevy truck forum?

This is an off topic thread.

 

[Boone83K10]

When I bought rusty the headliner was gone but the backing was still in place. I pulled the backing, cleaned it with a wire brush, bought new headliner material and used spray adhesive my wife had to install it. It all looked good for a few months. Then the new material started to sag.

I pulled out the headliner. Carefully peeled the material off without damaging it. Used Scotch 77 on the backer and the material and smoothed it all out again. That was 2 weeks ago and it is starting to sag AGAIN. What the hell am I doing wrong?! Do I need to wait longer for the glue to dry a little before mating the 2 together?

I'm going to let it go until it falls apart as much as possible and try it one more time

once it separates, you will not get it to stick. Did you use mineral spirits or something to get "oils" off the press board material. You have to get it completely clean before spraying the sticky on it. You also want to spray the sticky on the back of the headliner material so that it bonds to the sticky on the press board.

 

[89Suburban]

Bucket, 89S and I are the resident A body nuts. I liked the Century I had for a while. 1986 T-Type sedan.

^^^WERD

 

[89Suburban]

Did the headliner board turn fuzzy when you cleaned the old foam off?

CRS

 

[chengny]

I wrote this a couple of years ago when the procedure was fresh in my mind. Steps 5 & 6 (the spray-on polyurethane) are the keys to getting a workable substrate and a permanant adhesion of the fabric to shell:



1. The surface condition of the molded backing board/shell (don't quote me on nomenclature) is the key to this whole repair. It cannot be in the vehicle to do this properly - it must be on the cellar floor .

2. Peel the old headliner fabric carefully away from the shell. If any pieces of the shell start to come off with the fabric separate them with a butter knife and set them aside. If you can't locate a perfect shell at the junkyard or don't want to pay for a new one you can glue them back into the original with adhesive cement.

3. Step back and see what you have to work with. If you are lucky the fabric will have cleanly separated from the fiberglass shell. If not that is why you so carefully saved those little chunks.

4.Get a shop-vac and a brand new toilet brush (toilet brush - not a wire brush). Get down on your hands and knees and start firmly but gently (can I say that?) removing all of the failed adhesive. Rather like when your wife gets her face exfoliated. Don't worry if some of the shell carries away - it is actually better to get down to a new surface. After you are done scrubbing use the soft brush attachment for the vacuum and get all that old glue off. Then get your toilet brush back in hand and do it all over again, and again until you have a new surface to work with.

5. Go to the Home Depot and get a couple of cans of spray-on polyurethane and 4 cans of 3M heavy duty adhesive. (Oh yeah and a paint roller with a nice fluffy cartridge)

6. Spray the newly cleaned shell with the poly and let it dry overnight. In the AM you should find that you have a nice hard/firm/sturdy shell to work with.

7. I forgot to tell you that on the way home from Home Depot you should have gone to JoAnn Fabrics and asked one of the nice ladies there to direct you to the headliner material - they'll know exactly what you mean. You also should have measured your shell or brought your old headliner fabric with you in a plastic bag. They at JA Fabrics will set you up a beautiful piece of foam backed headliner that is thick enough to hide any gouges you may have made during the cleaning process.

8. Back down on your hands and knees and lay the new material out over the shell trim away to fit (leaving about two inches over on all sides.

9. You can guess the rest - read the instructions on the 3M can. I believe it will say to spray both surfaces and wait 30 minutes before joining. Use all 4 cans - trust me! It will look like a winter wonderland, but that's correct.

10. Have an assistant help you lay the fabric back down on the shell and get that new paint roller that I forgot to mention earlier. Get back down on your H&K's again and while gently tugging where needed, start rolling the fabric onto the shell.

11. Let it dry, do the final trimming of excess fabric and get ready to hang up in the truck.

One note; depending on the contours of your shell it may be prudent to place some folded up towels under certain areas of the shell so that when you roll the glue into the interface you can press down firmly.

 

[89Suburban]

http://www.gmsquarebody.com/forum/showthread.php?t=1408&highlight=headliner&page=9