I feel like I see a "how do we get rid of permanent marker?" thread every month and would like to compile the advice from the community to give collectors the best advice (and give the advice givers a break).
 
Method 1: Denatured Alcohol 
SUGGESTED BY: many members
METHOD: Apply denatured alcohol to area, then use cotton ball/q-tip/rag/paper towel/pencil eraser, rub the markered area- it will lift off the marker. This will have to be done several times for optimal results. 
VARIANT: Use an electric toothbrush.
CAUTION: Alcohol will damage labels. Apply only to the plastic markered area.


Method 2: Goo Gone
SUGGESTED BY: many members
METHOD: Apply goo gone and then rub the area with cotton ball/q-tip.
CAUTION: Too much goo gone will eat away at the plastic. 
CAUTION: Rubbing too hard will destroy the plastic.
CAUTION: Goo gone will remove the sticky and/or discolor your labels. Apply only to the plastic markered area.


Method 3: Magic Eraser
SUGGESTED BY: a few members
METHOD: Gently wipe with magic eraser pad. 
VARIANT: Add goo gone on magic eraser pad. 
CAUTION: May damage/discolor label.
CAUTION: May damage texture of plastic.


Method 4: Axe Body Spray
SUGGESTED BY: a few members
METHOD: Spray on, wipe or rub off.
CAUTION: Cart will smell like cologne. 
CAUTION: Will damage/discolor label.


Method 6: Nail Polish Removal
SUGGESTED BY: a few members
METHOD: Wipe nail polish removal on markered area- wipe off.
CAUTION: Reports of whitening or discoloration to plastic.
CAUTION: Will damage/discolor label.


Method 7: Dry Erase Marker
SUGGESTED BY: a few members.
METHOD: Scribble dry erase marker on the permanent marker then wipe off. The dry erase should pick up the permanent marker.
CAUTION: Mixed results with textured NES carts.
CAUTION: Might take up to four applications.


Method 8: Sunscreen
SUGGESTED BY: one member
METHOD: Apply sunscreen (unspecified spf) to markered area, let it sit, wipe off.
CAUTION: Unknown effects, sounds crazy.

Method 9: Brake fluid
SUGGESTED BY: a mess of members
METHOD: Rub on, rub off.
CAUTION: Keep the fluid away from the edge of the labels, where it can wick the fluid.
Method 1: Insta Lift (which is a remover of paint, permanent marker and other materials)
SUGGESTED BY: a few members
METHOD: Rub it on, and immediately rub it off.
CAUTION: This works well for labels, but it will eat the plastic of your cart. 


Everyone has their favorite methods and it's STRONGLY recommended that you test these on a Silent Service cart before trying to clean up your Flintstones 2 or TMNT4 cart. 

(is this sticky worthy?)

Amen!  Hey, I almost forgot to ask if you are going to make a "How to remove blue marker from carts" thread?

Sunscreen? Really?

I have heard good things about this one. It's actually called a permanent ink remover. Haven't tried it yet though.

http://www.officedepot.com/a/prod...

I've never done this one before, but I've heard of it.

Method Omega: Baking Soda Toothpaste
METHOD: Apply toothpaste, let sit for 1 minute, scrub off with toothbrush
CAUTION: Dangerously refreshing

ba/adam - get to testing! maybe you'll discover (or confirm) the next great cleaning method!

my personal method (600 sandpaper/rubbing alcohol) was effective as far as removing ink, but also removed a lot of plastic.

I just noticed this thread, and I have to say Mr. Clean's Extra Power Magic Eraser is all you need.

I used toothpaste, but it works because it is brittle like a magic eraser and actually smooths the plastic. Might want to distinguish which ones alter the plastic texture.

My method is lightly rub the marker with 90% rubbing alcohol on cotton swabs. Sometimes this removes the marker completely (escpecially red or blue marker). Sometimes it still leaves a faint amount of the marker. I then go over this with a Mr Clean Magic Eraser. I gently rub the faint marker off with the magic eraser until it's gone. As long as you don't rub to hard you won't damage the cart finish on NES/SNES games. This method works really good on on N64 carts since they have a much smoother finish to begin with.

I haven't come across any marker this hasn't worked on.

bump for noobs!

It depends on what sort of magic marker was used. Different manufacturers use different compounds in the ink.

If your first attempts fail, a useful alternative is witch hazel. You can buy it in almost any drugstore. It's an astringent and lifts a remarkable number of substances. (It obliterates poison ivy rash.) It's also not as nasty or stinky as stuff like Goo Gone. I believe it's also fairly non-toxic, though you should check the bottle. Apply a couple drops to a soft cloth and gently dab the marked areas. CAREFUL: Witch hazel will definitely soak through labels and dissolve the adhesive beneath. It will also stain labels. If you're worried, you can create a 3:1 solution with distilled water which will be gentler on the plastic.

DISCLAIMER: I've never tried it on a cartridge. I've never had to. But witch hazel has worked for me on many other surfaces and I have faith in it.

Now, does anyone have some tips on how to remove white-out?

I clean marker off with a normal pink eraser wet down with rubbing alcohol to prevent texture smoothing. It seems to work fairly well!

it's been a few months! bump

I've got a personal method that might help for people in the Benelux area that have access to "wasbenzine":

Method: Wasbenzine
SUGGESTED BY: one member
METHOD: Apply wasbenzine to a paper towel and rub the moistened paper towel against the marker area (works great for sticker residue as well).
CAUTION: Works on labels, too, unless they have lost their protective layer from wear & tear (always stay away from the edges, as the wasbenzine will be absorbed and it will leave stains).
CAUTION 2: Use rubber gloves and keep the area well-ventilated.

The dry erase marker works great on boxes. I haven't had much luck with it on carts though, the plastic part at least.

What about actually cleaning the contacts on a game. I have seen many different ways just wondering what people recommend I have never cleaned a game myself, might need to do it someday

Magic eraser worked for me it came off so easily.

Weiman's glass cooktop cleaner.  You can find this stuff at Wal-Mart, it comes in a white bottle and is a thick white paste-like goop.  I'd only use this if alcohol doesn't do the trick, though.  Alcohol is good for a surface clean, Weiman's is a bit tougher.  If you go with weiman's don't use too much, it is abrasive so it will harm the gold coating if you scrub too hard.  But generally rubbing alcohol is the way to go. 

ive been cleaning pen ink off of carts for years my method is a bit odd but ive found it to work best. you will need

a new tooth brush with with medium or firm bristles
colgate tooth paste
scissors
and 91 percent alcohol

before you do anything take the alholhol and wipe the surface ink off as best you can.
(sometimes it will come off with just that)

if not then take you tooth brush and cut the bristles off to make them shorter. (make sure it fairly evenly cut)

put the tooth paste and the alcohol on the brush.

now just brush the cart with the tooth brush. it always comes off. some take longer than others just take you time. once its gone take some windex and wipe it clean. and to make it shine use some pledge (pledge is safe on wax labels) on rare occasion the ink can stain the cart if that happens it will never come all the way off. unfortunatly.

the main problem is the ink gets in the texture of the game cart and wiping it doesnt reach the ink very well.

be careful if your doing this on a golden zelda cart.

Since it's already been bumped we can add a little science.

Toothpaste works because of it's abrasive material. Usually it's sand but some have switched to using only baking soda. The higher the "whitening" the more abrasive it is and the better it will be at removing marker. Rather than use toothpaste you'd probably be better off using face cleaner with scrubbing beads. Something with salasylic acid (aspirin) perhaps. That is assuming we want to avoid actual cleaning agents.

Most cleaners all really boil down to a few active chemicals that redissolve the ink. I've found a new one that seems to work easily with less side effects and that's purple power citrus. The original is too strong but the citrus works well and won't ruin a label with overspray if you clean it off carefully. http://www.amazon.com/Purple-Powe...

First time seeing this thread, nice bump. I've had great success with Dry Erase markers, rubbing alcohol, and magic eraser.

91% isopropyl alcohol tends to leave a white film (or drys out the plastic?) when used to remove permanent marker from the exterior of an NES cart. Anyone notice this?

yeah thats normal.  its doesn't actually dry out the cart just  wipe it off  with glass cleaner

Yeah I can vouch for toothpaste. I've trusted using it on a Power Blade 2 cart that had permanent marker on it. Toothpaste + good scrubbing with a cotton swab. Great results. Thanks again 8bitpat for the recommendation.

Alternate with cooking oil. The oil rejuvinates the plastic and prevents it from drying out.

I generally use the two for sticker removal, but I noticed using them on Genesis cases left otherwise dingy plastic looking like new. 

Edit: I've also used mineral spirits (paint thinner) on saturn disc art to remove permanent marker. Didn't hurt the disc, and gently removed most of the marker. If I hold it under a certain light and tilt the disk I can make out a faint outline where the writing was, but all in all it was pretty successful and doesn't remove a layer of protective covering like a magic eraser would.