Full Glue Pull Demonstration for Paintless Dent Repair and Dent Removal
Today, we’re going to demonstrate how glue pulling really works and we have a door ding on a 2018 Ford F-150 to take care of. The body of the truck is made from aluminum and we’re going to take a look at how it differs from a regular steel body vehicle. We will also get into why glue pulling is considered for the repair rather than pushing on the metal from the inside.
The dent itself is not too severe and that is why Jack chose to do the repair live. As you can see, the dent is close to the door handle and with the PDR light, we can see that it isn’t too deep either. The special PDR light allows us to see dent clearly as we as any damage that might show up around it. Along with an aluminum body, the truck also has laminated safety glass which makes it difficult to use the traditional method of lowering the window and going in through the window channel.
Why does the type of glass make a difference? Well, there are basically two types of glass that are used in cars – tempered and laminated. The difference between the two is that laminated glass cracks and tempered glass shatters when damaged. Laminated glass is made from two different pieces of glass that are joined together with a film that keeps the glass together rather than breaking into pieces. Laminated glass can easily crack when pressure is applied to the edges which are why glue-pulling is the preferred method for PDR.
As you already know, at Sioux Falls Dent Repair, we use all types of glue-pulling tabs from all the best brands such as KECO, Edgy Tools, Robo Tabs, and Black Plaque PDR. They all bring their own benefits to the table and we always have them at hand for any type of repair.
Getting back to the dent, Jack starts things off with the Edgy Tools glue tabs because they don’t have the strongest grip on the metal and this kind of dent requires small pulls rather than large ones. After applying the glue, Jack gets two pulls on the tab and the glue stays on the car. This allows for a softer pull because the dent is not excessively large. With the first two pulls, we can see a little progress but we all know that PDR takes time and patience.
The next tab being used is the Root Beer from Anson PDR. With this tab, Jack is using a Robo Mini Lifter from KECO which takes the tab off with a loud “pop”. Once the tab is off, we can see that there was a little bit of an overpull which was expected with the type of tab and tool combination. Under the PDR lights, we can see the high spot on the dent and Jack has to now push the metal back down. For this, Jack chooses the KECO Root Beer Knockdown tool and the Shane Jacks Blending Hammer with Edgy Tools tips. With just a couple of minutes of knockdown work, we can see how Jack has almost taken out all the damage. There are only a few spots left that will be taken out by wet sanding and polishing the area. Jack completes the repair with a couple of small pull tabs and a few more seconds of hammering. After a little bit of polishing, Jack is happy with the result and is ready to move on to another dent on the other side of the vehicle.
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When we last discussed glue pulling tabs, we talked about the smaller ones that we use here at Sioux Falls Dent Repair. Today, we’ll be looking further and getting to know a little more about the crease tabs that we use in the shop.
There are all types of crease tabs, as you can imagine. Some with textured finishes and some smooth. Black Plague PDR was probably one of the first names to introduce the high quality pull tabs and we continue to use them today. The first generation of pull tabs from Black Plague PDR were actually all black in color but have now changed to green and black. The new tabs come with a cavity along the surface which allows us to apply the glue in a straight line. This helps us reduce the amount of glue being used and also gives us a precise pulling technique.
Black Plague PDR has all different types of pull tabs and in all different sizes. The second generation included a copper thread insert to stop the bolts from breaking off from the plastic body. Another commonly used tab is the Smooth Tabs Gang Green Edition and they work pretty well on almost all types of crease dents.
The newer tabs that we use and that are available in the market right now are from KECO Tabs. These are also being used now by body shops more often because of their durability. As you can see, one of the tabs actually has a number of slits in it. This makes it so that the tab is flexible and the technician can put more pressure on a certain area rather than the entire tab. Another ingenious tab from KECO is the Viper Modular Articulating Glue Tabs range which allows you to remove or add individual tabs according to the kind of dent you’re working on. Plus, the Viper Modular series can be bent into customizable angles for an even better PDR experience. Once again, we also use the Ice and Blue tabs that are used for different kinds of dent jobs and have different strengths.
We actually have so many tabs to choose from that we often don’t even use some and sit in the shop for months before we actually put them to use. As is with most tools, once you get used to certain tools and accessories, it is hard to move to another design.
If you want to know more about the glue pull tabs we use, go ahead an each out to us directly bycalling or texting us!
In today’s quick video, we are tackling some crease-style dents on the hood of a 2019 BMW X3. According to the owner, they came out from a restaurant they parked at and saw the dents on their car’s hood.
The hood of the X3 is made from aluminum and has absolutely no access points on the back of the hood which is why we had to opt for the glue pulling method for removing the dents. Fortunately, we here at Sioux Falls Dent Repair have a lot of experience in glue pulling and own some of the best pull tabs in the industry.
As you can see in the “after” footage, the dents and other damage was completely removed and the hood looks as good as new.
If you have a car with similar dents or even worse and are thinking about the PDR option, give us a call or text us at 605-250-1023.
Today we are going to be discussing using the glue pull method when performing paintless dent removal. This vehicle we are showing you here today is a Chevy Impala and it has some damage in the roof panel of the vehicle right above the drivers seat. This damage was cause when the customer was taking something down from their garage and it accidentally fell on the roof of this Impala.
Repair Method Choices
Now often times we want to gain access to the back side of the damaged area and push the area out with tools. This would have been a perfectly acceptable way to make this repair. After reviewing the damage with the customer we found that it would be more cost effective for us to remove this damage using glue pulling and pull the damage up verses lowering the entire headliner assembly and pushing the damage out. Now this is not always the case but this repair style worked great for this repair.
To Glue Pull Or Not To Glue Pull
One of the biggest factors that come into play when deciding the repair method is the excising paint finish. If this roof had been repainted before and not had its factory paint finish on it we would do everything we can to NOT glue pull on this area. Why? Because we would run the risk of actually pulling the non factory paint finish off of the car leaving a spot with paint missing and pulled off of the car. This is why it is so important to choose paintless dent repair verses going to a body shop and having your vehicle repainted. The factory paint finish is the best paint finish that you can get on your vehicle, will last the longest and has the strongest bond to the panel.
Have questions about anything you viewed here or have a repair of your own?
We often get asked “What Kind of Dents Can Be Fixed?” Not every dent is the same and there are many variables when determining what can and cannot be fixed. Even down to each person may have their own standard for a repair.
Shallow Dents
These are typically the easiest to repair assuming we can get a tool to the backside to push the damage out. Even shallow dents in certain metals, lets say aluminum, high strength steel or stainless steel though create extra difficulties. Because these metals are stronger even though they may be physically thinner does not mean they are easy to remove dents from. Stronger metals make even a shallow impact point difficult to remove. This is especially true when we cannot push the damage out and have to use the glue pulling method.
A perfect example for this is kitchen appliances or washer and dryers. Most of todays appliances and the current trend is stainless steel. We have attempted to make repairs on these items and more often then not are NOT able to repair the damage to our satisfaction. That does not mean the customer is not extremely happy with the repair however. If a person can have a dent removed lets say 80 t o 90% that is fantastic for them. The reason being is their alternative for a repair might even be as extreme as replacing the appliance!
Deep Dents
There are many degrees of deep dents. What someone may consider deep we might consider not repairable. We even have a tool called a Dent Depth Gauge from Black Plague PDR to help measure the depth of dents to better estimate damage and know for sure prior to the repair how the damage will turn out. For our pricing structure we are talk tenths of millimeters for depth.
Our pricing guide prices out depths as so:
Shallow Depth <.25mm
Medium Depth: .26-.75mm
Deep Depth: .76+mm
We have repaired dents into the 2mm deep range, but also struggled repairing dents in the 1.0mm range. This is where access to the backside is extremely important. Not only for a dent repair tool but also specialized metal shrinking tools as well.
Here is our dent depth gauge being used to measure the depth of a dent (2mm+)
Glue Pull Dent Repair
When we cannot push damage out with a traditional tool we have to resort to the glue pulling method for repairs. Here we use specialized hot metal adhesives to glue a glue tab to the vehicles paint finish. Don’t worry this entire process is designed specifically for this and will not harm the vehicles factory finish. From there we let the glue try sometimes for only a few seconds. We then use specialized glue pulling devices to pull the damage out. From there we use a release agent to release the glue from the vehicle and it peels right off.
Traditional Methods
The best choice for us to repair dents is to be able to glue pull AND push damage out with a traditional tools. Even extreme damage we may start using the glue pull method to pull a bunch of the damage out. Once the damage has been pulled out we then can go in with a tool and do the final details to finish up a dent repair.
We always tell people 80% of the repair is ONLY 20% of the work. The last 20% of the repair IS 80% of the work. This is why you might see others do repairs and they look not quite finished, or much “better”. Say for instance you have a repair that takes a technician 4-5 hours. It might only take him a hour or so to “rough” the damage out or get it to 80%. The biggest battle is getting the minor waves, wiggles, low and high spots all flat.
Do you have questions about our dent removal process?
