PDR on Old Metal?

-
gunbunny

gunbunny

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 14, 2009
Messages
3,970
Reaction score
2,968
Location
Cincinnati, OH
Anybody know if this can be done? Had a kid sideswipe me in my Dart last month. My car is mostly okay, it pushed the absorber on the rear bumper in about 10mm.
Also left a small shallow dent in the quarter panel. The car is a survivor, original paint. I don't want putty or paint work done. Once we do that, it's over.
Anyone had any experience with the old heavy sheet metal?
damage1.jpg
damage2.jpg
 
I've heard that if a dent is small that a toilet plunger will pull the dent out BUT I DON'T KNOW IF THIS IS A FACT.
 
i think a good PDR guy could ease that out. there doesn't appear to be any hard creases(?) so that's a plus.

if you don't have any leads on a guy, head over to a higher end dealership or paint shop and ask who they use. also, wrap/tint/rim shops that do nicer stuff are a good resource too.
 
I agree with everything junkyardhero said. I've been doing PDR at a Lexus dealership for over 20 years and 30 years total. Every dealer has a PDR guy, but I would stick to the high line dealers. Also detail companies and body shops would be good places for leads.

Access to the back of the dent is going to be the key on that repair. In front of the gas cap is probably gonna require removing the LR arm rest/door card to get access. If it was behind the gas cap you have easy access through the trunk.

Find a good PDR tech and ask for references or pics of previous repairs. Most of us keep some pics on our phones of past accomplishments.
 
A friend of mine has a PDR shop and is very good at it, he says old metal can definitely be PDR'd, just takes a little more effort because it is heavier/thicker. Not every ding can be fixed mind you, its like @junkyardhero said, there doesnt appear to be any hard creases in it, which is a plus, and definitely go to someone reputable whos been around for awhile, its amazing how many pdr shops will "spring up" during storm season.
@BrianT said it right
 
I been doing PDR work since the mid 80'S and now I'm too old to keep a steady hand and a good eye on the dent.
Defiantly worth finding someone that is good to remove it. It can be pushed out and totally understand you not wanting to fill it full of bondo and repaint it.
 
I have a 78 fury 2 door that has a bunch of what look like shopping cart dings and I took it in for. A quote on a repaint and had 2 body shops actually suggest that I take it to one of those type places first before I let them have it for the repaint. I haven't done a thing with it yet that's been a few years since.
 
The young man who did the PDR work on the passenger side doors of my 2004 Ram was truly an artist at his work. My wife killed both doors when she sideswiped a wooden post. Long shallow dents but the paint wasn't scratched. He fixed them perfect...like it never happened! Hopefully you can find someone equally skilled in your area, or con @BrianT into a road trip...lol. @BrianT Would the glue on dent puller attachments work on this type dent if no access from behind?
 
JDMopar said:
The young man who did the PDR work on the passenger side doors of my 2004 Ram was truly an artist at his work. My wife killed both doors when she sideswiped a wooden post. Long shallow dents but the paint wasn't scratched. He fixed them perfect...like it never happened! Hopefully you can find someone equally skilled in your area, or con @BrianT into a road trip...lol. @BrianT Would the glue on dent puller attachments work on this type dent if no access from behind?
Click to expand...
Yes. PDR is essentially hot glue. There are different glues. The surface prep, type of tab(s), tab prep, how long you wait to pull, lever versus a slide hammer, etc. It all matters. The process is repeated (glue tabs let go) until it is completely pulled.
 
Stick a deflated ball dead square behind the dent and something solid and very slowly inflate it ?
 
If you can get at it from behind, and if there's something that the back side of the ball can bear against then maybe.
 
There are different methods of PDR. One of the methods uses tools that push from behind the dent. I've got a set but haven't spent much time with them. I would think this is the option for heavier gauge sheet metal. I have tried the glue method but it never seems to adhere well enough.
 
Thanks for the answers. The car is a four door, so plenty of room from the trunk.
I'm even going to try to do this myself. If you look at the 1st photo, just above the bigger dent, there is a slightly smaller dent. I was just worried whether it could be done or not with the heavier metal.

On the other end of this is the story of the idiot who hit my car.
The kid who hit me was in a Acura (that he borrowed). He decided to pass me on the shoulder of the road.
That car has a crease from wheel well to wheel well.
But it gets better!
I got a call from the prosecutors office. I was subpoenaed to appear in court yesterday. I get there to find out the kid plead not guilty. He thought if he did he'd get out of a $150 ticket.
I'm called up to tell what happened. I tell the court, then I'm asked if there are any other details I needed to share. I let the court know that the insurance company the kid provided as his, didn't actually cover him. That as of then, it was looking like my uninsured policy was going have to cover this. I gave the court the letter from Progressive stating that they were declining coverage. When asked, the kid said that he "thought" his parents had him on their Progressive policy. We break, and come back to the prosecutor stating that he made a phone call to the parents, they dropped the kid because he went to college and had no car.
The kid was driving without insurance.
In the end, in an attempt to avoid a $150 ticket, that he could have paid online, he got fined $150, court costs, $300 fine for no insurance, 1 year suspension of license, $50 reinstatement fee, plus costs, and required to maintain a FS (high risk) insurance policy for 3 years after reinstatement.
But wait, there's more!
I get home and get a phone call from State Farm. That is who the person, who the kid borrowed the car from, is insured.
They informed me that they were going to cover the damage. So, lets see how this all goes.
In the end, I want the repair to be a PDR and not new paint or bondo. This is a damn nice car and it can only be original once.
 
I have rods too for getting behind and under. If using the glue method, soak the new pull tabs in alcohol, then let them dry completely. Clean the panel well with alcohol as well. Use the biggest tab that will fit or multiple tabs. Put a 2x4 on the ground for the fulcrum and another as the lever to strap to. Not trying to pull too hard, but gently, slowly apply pressure instead of a slide hammer. Tapping the panel around the area being pulled with a plastic or rubber tipped hammer helps too.

Modern metal is so much thinner than 90s, much less 60s metal. If the PDR doesn't work, I use a slide hammer spot welder where I cannot get behind a panel. It works well but there can be no paint where pulled or grounded and the final panel will have some filler, just way less than it would have been. Needs a 10ga cable no longer than 50 feet from the outlet to be effective. The ground clamp is an electrode with a threaded collet. Both the gun and the ground are spot welded to the car, then the collet is rotated to make good contact to the metal or everything pops off on the next trigger pull. Disconnect battery or at least the alternator.
 
diymirage said:
Stick a deflated ball dead square behind the dent and something solid and very slowly inflate it ?
Click to expand...
It works, but not in this application.
My nephew pushed the 1/4 panel out on his jeep with a football.
His dad brought the jeep down to my shop, and we used the porta power to massage it enough to get the tail-light and fender flare on it.
Kid got it about 80% with the football on the 1/4.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
-

Back
Top