Mend-a-Dent - Prosperity, SC
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FAQ's

What is Paintless dent repair?
Paintless Dent Repair, or (PDR) is the craft of removing dents and dings from automobiles by patiently massaging the dent from the back of the damaged panel using specialized tools. It is believed to have originated in the Mercedes assembly plants in europe, although early american auto workers were known to have crafted crude tools out of anything they could find in the early 1900's and perform what is called "metal bumping" which in essence would bump the assembly line damage from automotive panels prior to them being painted.

What are the benefits of PDR?
No grinding, bondo, fillers, or primers are needed because your original factory paint is not disturbed.

Money saved, as well as your time are major benefits to you, the consumer. My repairs are usually half the cost of the body shop and most repairs performed within one hour.

The environment.
because I use no chemicals, you can be comforted in knowing that you are actually contributing to a healthier environment for us all.

Will my paint be damaged?
No. Today's factory paints are very flexible and will not be damaged in any way by this process. PDR is the only way to repair a dent and still keep your factory paint.

Will my dents be gone 100%?
On minor door dings and shallow dents, yes. The deeper the dent the more difficult it is to repair. However; I always explain in detail how your dent will look and let you decide beforehand whether to seek traditional body shop or have me proceed.

Will my dents come back?
Absolutely not. Once a dent has been removed properly with PDR it never comes back.
Most dents repaired conventionally by traditional body shop methods develop a ring around the dent, or sand scratch marks 3 - 6 months after the repair. This is never the case with properly performed PDR.

Can any dent be fixed?
No. The most important factors in determining whether a dent can be removed by PDR is it's size to depth ratio and location. Dents the size of a dinner plate or larger can be fixed successfully as long as they are not too deep and Some dents as small as a dime cannot be fixed because the metal is deep and stretched.

Cracked paint can also be an indication that a dent is too deep. The most common dents fixed are the size of a golf ball and under. 95% of minor dents can be repaired. About 5% of minor dents can't be fixed due to depth or location. Areas such as quarter panel (wheel well) lips, some forward areas of heavily braced hoods, and the very edges of some panels are examples of bad locations.

What does "no drilling" mean?
MEND-A-DENT does not drill. period!

It has become common practice by many PDR technicians to drill or punch holes in places like door frames, quarter panel jambs, inner wheelhouse panels, etc. to gain access to a dent with their tools. Most of the time, the customer is not even informed of this. I have seen "repairs" where as many as 7 - 10 holes were drilled to access one dent.

Can MEND-A-DENT help me with my LEASE RETURN vehicle?
It sure can. I can remove those dents for less than you will be charged for "excessive wear and tear on your vehicle's exterior". If your lease is up soon, give me a call, you'll be glad you did.

I've got lots of dents, do you have a discount for more than one dent? Yes, I offer discounts for multiple dents. If you have more than one minor dent on a panel, I can generally include those dents for very little extra depending on the sizes and number of dents.

Can PDR help me sell my car?
Yes. If you're selling your car, PDR is one of the best ways to get top dollar, more interested buyers, and a quicker sale.

Science behind paintless dent removal

A dent is a dent yet can be described scientifically. This is where an argument of art versus science can be made.

Metal used in automotive stamping is a crystalline solid:

Metallic solids are elemental substances whose atoms are held in position in the crystal lattice by metallic bonding forces.

Because of it's chemical makeup of atoms, metal when stamped has springback. Some panels depending on shape have to be stamped twice because of this springback. Fortunately for me in the PDR field it is the chemical makeup and the springback effect along with the malleability of metal that allows me to perform PDR. It all changes at a point due to various stages of damage and this is where science versus art matters.
When you look at the stress strain chart you will see the various changes metal takes on when being damaged. As long as our dent stays in the elastic limit it will be in the scientific stage where it can easily be repaired by any one performing paintless dent repair. However; once it hits the plastic deformation region it becomes what we in PDR refer to as "stretched". Once this occurs the difference in PDR technicians ability come into play and art work takes over determining the dent removals outcome. The reason for this is because scientifically once metal is beyond it's plastic deformation stage it is beyond repair with tools. However; time and time again we prove science wrong and this is where our individual artistic abilities take over and helps us shape and mold and hide the damage by blending. It takes years of study and practice to reach this ability in Paintless dent removal.





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