title says it all. Tan Freeland rifle sling. Looks like either felt tip or ball point pen. Any ideas that won't screw up the finish?

Whatever I do, I just don't want to make it worse.

I've had ball point pens leak in a couple of shirts,
and pouring rubbing alcohol thru the fabric did
a wonderful job. That was fresh, same-day,
ink.

I don't know what effect it would have on leather,
or if it would work on older stains.

Never tried removing ink with it, but I've used rubbing alcohol to remove oily grime from old holsters - including some that are fairly desirable collector types such as Heiser, etc. Alcohol may not remove the ink, but it would be the first thing I'd try. No need to saturate the leather. Just wet a paper towel and rub it on the spot and I'd try to avoid spreading it out too far from where the ink actually is. Alcohol won't damage the leather. I use a saddle soap afterward to remoisturize the leather.

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S&W Forum Member #721

Zippo lighter fluid and a toothbrush works well for me. Go easy though......

Alcohol will take the color and finish out of the leather, I like the lighter fluid idea but here's what a search turned up:

Method 2 Hairspray Method

Get a can of hairspray, and spray a small amount directly on the stained area.
Leave the hairspray on the stain for about 5 minutes.
Use a soft, dry cloth to gently wipe the hairspray from the leather. ...
Dampen another piece of cloth. ...
Apply leather conditioner to the area using a soft cloth.

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Back to back World War Champs.

If all else fails , dye the leather black . Permanent marker ink is tough to remove once set in and I haven't found a completely satisfactory way to do it. The black dyed holster covered the black marker pretty well.
Gary

If permanent ink there's only one way to get rid of it and that is to scuff off the surface of the leather it it on then smooth out the scuffing. If it has penetrated below the surface it will never come out. I had a natural tan colored leather sling from Springfield Armory that had a bunch of stains on it that I covered up by getting some brown leather dye and dying the whole sling. To be honest, it looks much better a deep rich dark brown than natural colored anyway. After I dyed it and rubbed some neets foot oil into it it looks like a vintage sling and compliments my old rifle nicely.

Hair spray.