Body metal of foreign and domestic cars cars the thickness rarely exceeds 0.6 - 0.8 mm, therefore it is easily deformed, forming dents of various shapes. For a long time, manual straightening was the main way to remove dents, requiring the dismantling of a car body part. Modern techniques allow repairing a number of dents without dismantling and painting body elements.
How do dents appear on the body?
A dent in a car can occur for a variety of reasons. The thickness and softness of sheet steel, aluminum used for the production of body parts is insufficient to resist shock or pressure. The body metal of the hood, roof, trunk lid, car fenders and doors is deformed:
- if you strongly lean on the car with your elbow or knee;
- from road debris, stones;
- when falling from the roofs of clods of hard snow, icicles;
- from blows of roadside branches;
- when hit by the door of a neighboring car;
- as a result of unsuccessful parking (during rear collisions with building blocks, poles, walls, road barriers);
- from hooligan actions (hitting the car with a hand, foot);
- in any traffic accident.
Without considering the severe damage to the body in an accident, which is accompanied by gusts of metal, a significant part of the dents is distinguished by the preservation of the paint layer. Therefore, they can be repaired without painting, partially disassembling the body equipment.
Local Repair Techniques
Local repair is usually called work with a separate body part, which is carried out with partial painting of the body element or without painting. Local repair is cheaper and faster than manual straightening, does not require body disassembly. For non-removable body parts (roofs, rear fenders), local repair is preferable, as it does not require complex work - interior disassembly, element trimming, welding, assembly operations.
Basic PDR technology
The abbreviation PDR is used to shorten the long name of the technique. The literal translation of the term "paintless dent removal" sounds like "paintless dent removal." The method was first used by Mercedes body shop master Oskar Flyg, who discovered that metal could be straightened from the inside with a long spring steel lever. The lever is inserted into the technological holes of the body part through the technological holes or under the removed trim of the passenger compartment, trunk.
Since the middle of the last century, dozens of forms of levers and hooks have been developed, but the essence of the method has remained the same. For deep dents, in addition to the lever, vacuum hoods are used. During paintless repair of aluminum parts, along with the main technique, induction devices are used that heat aluminum with high-frequency currents.
An example of dent removal using the PDR method
Removal of a large dent on the hood, without painting.
Dent photo
Photo of the hood after dent repair
Adhesive, vacuum extract
With glue hood, “fungi” are glued to the dent with hot glue, caps, for which the metal is pulled out with a reverse hammer. The vacuum method uses suction cups of various sizes, from under which air is pumped out by a pump or compressor. The pressure difference between the outer and inner sides of the dent pushes the metal out. After air is supplied through the valve, the suction cup is removed without damaging the paintwork.
Glue and vacuum hoods straighten shallow dents well correct form. When editing extensive dents, the techniques are combined with a basic lever hood.
What dents cannot be "pulled out":
- if there are gusts of metal;
- dents on stampings, edges, edges of a body part;
- dents on thick-walled or inaccessible parts;
- chipped car enamel;
- putty places (the putty peels off along with the paint).
For such damage, a spotter hood is used (requires local painting of the repaired area) or manual straightening with disassembly of the body element.
Can you fix a dent yourself?
A garage repair lover can straighten a dent on their own, but this will require training and certain financial costs.
Necessary:
- Purchase an expensive set of PDR equipment.
- Practice repeatedly to acquire skills on broken doors or wings.
The artisanal methods found on the Internet can do more harm than good. Repairs with a building hair dryer, plumbing plunger, homemade or cheap suction cups do not bring results. The inept use of such techniques causes peeling of the enamel. In addition to a small dent, blisters appear on the body.
High-quality removal of a dent without painting is possible only in an equipped car repair shop; experienced specialists should carry out the work.
All three methods are quite simple, they can be done by hand, as they do not require expensive equipment and special skills. Removal of dents without painting is carried out by vacuum, adhesive method and by PDR technologies.
To begin with, it is necessary to inspect the damage. Paintless dent repair cannot be carried out if:
- damaged paintwork;
- the deformation has a complex shape with deep, sharp fractures;
- the deformed area was already painted, and the painting was done poorly;
- the car has been in operation for more than 15 years and microcracks and traces of corrosion are visible on the paintwork.
In all other cases, you can straighten the dents with your own hands.
Pulling out dents is done using a special Pops-a-Dent kit.
It includes a special plastic rocker. It has wide legs with soft polymer sponge at the ends to prevent damage to the surface. Several nozzles of various sizes, it is their soles that are glued to the defect and straighten the dents. Hot-melt gun and a few sticks with silicone hot-melt adhesive.
- Using this device, removing a dent with your own hands is quite simple: We degrease the defect and wipe it dry. There should be no dust on the surface.
- We quickly apply the melted glue to a clean nozzle and press it against the deformed surface, as if twisting it left and right a quarter of a turn.
ATTENTION! The glue must necessarily come out through the technological holes in the sole of the nozzle, this will give the mount additional strength.
- Cooling time 2-3 minutes.
- We pass the stalk of the nozzle into the hole.
- We wind the lamb onto the thread and begin the slow straightening of the dent to the level of the surrounding metal of the body.
- Leave for 5-7 minutes in this position.
- We unscrew the lamb and remove the arc.
- We heat the plastic with a building hair dryer at the lowest temperature.
- We separate the nozzle by slightly scrolling it to the right, to the left.
However, if you drive carefully and dents are atypical damage for your car, buying the whole set is completely unnecessary. It is enough to purchase a glue gun, which can be useful on the farm. The arc can be easily made with your own hands from wood, and as a nozzle, use a regular screw with a wide hat. Pulling dents will happen a little differently:
- glue is applied directly to the defect;
- a bolt head is applied to the molten mass;
- wait a minute, one and a half, so that the plastic grabs slightly;
- a new layer is applied over the cap and the old glue so that the layers stick together.
The further process of removing dents on the car will occur in the same way as described earlier.
Vacuum
Removing dents without painting by the vacuum method is similar in process to the adhesive technology. However, it has one indisputable advantage over it. After the repair is completed, there is no need to remove the adhesive, risking damage to the paintwork or re-deforming the surface.
Removing a medium-sized dent on a car is done using a vacuum suction cup. Different models have different sole area. The ideal option a case is considered when the sole of the suction cup is slightly missing from the border of the defect.
The preparatory process is limited only to cleaning the work surface. Vacuum is created in the installed suction cup using an electric or manual pump. Once a tight and secure fit is achieved, the hose is disconnected and the dent repair can begin.
After the surface has taken its original form, a special valve opens and the suction cup is easily removed from the car body.
PDR technology
This process is the most difficult to do by hand. It will require a set of rather expensive, special tools - levers.
This paintless dent repair is used for extensive and complex damage. The process consists in exposing a dent on a car from the inside of the body surface. If necessary, the inner lining is removed and the parts that interfere with access are dismantled.
The hooks used to remove dents from a car come in a variety of shapes and lengths. Their working parts, which directly affect the metal, are bent at different angles.
- Before straightening a dent, the work surface is cleaned.
- In places of bending, damage relieves the stress of the metal.
- The part is heated with a building hair dryer to 40-50°C.
- The edges of the bend are slightly tapped through a plastic gasket (punch).
- Alignment of dents is carried out by pressing on the metal surface from the inside.
The lever most suitable in shape is inserted into the technological hole, scrolling the handle, and act on the surface with a pressing movement. Straightening dents with hooks requires certain skills and accuracy. In professional kits, there are special wedges made of polymers that are placed under the metal of the hook so as not to deform the elements of the car.
See also video
Dents can appear on the body of any car, even if its owner is a neat and professional driver. The causes of defects can be different: collisions with curbs and other fences, traffic accidents, falling icicles, vandalism, etc. But at the same time, to solve the problem that has arisen, it is not necessary to resort to expensive service stations, since in most cases you can fix the problem yourself.
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Body inspection before repair
It is recommended to inspect the body for defects on the street, in bright daylight. Only under these conditions will the flaws be clearly visible.
Before removing dents, you must also verify the integrity paintwork, otherwise there will be no point in carrying out the manipulation.
Over the past two decades, almost all automakers have been painting cars with paint with polymer components in the composition, which allow the paintwork to stretch along with the metal.
Therefore, if your car is older, most likely it will not work to pull out a dent in a paintless way - the car will still need to be painted. In this case, it is quite possible to apply the classic straightening.
Car dent removal using PDR
Today, PDR technology is very popular, which allows you to remove dents without painting. It is used for minor deformations of the body, with an intact paintwork.
This method must not be used when :
- Painting a car with low-quality paint;
- Deep dents on the body, which will indicate a constriction of the metal;
- Repair of the damaged area with the use of a primer mixture;
- The appearance of cracks and chips on the surface of the paintwork;
In addition, the PDR method is often ineffective if the thresholds, pillars, edges of the hood, doors and trunk are damaged.
Dent removal tools are available from specialist retailers.
Paintless Dent Removal Tools 1) . If the dent is located in a hard-to-reach area, then it is also necessary to dismantle the skin and all body elements that can place unhindered access.
2) . After the type of damage is established, we select the most suitable lever in a particular case. Further, with the help of a tool inserted into a suitable technological hole, we exert a force on the damaged body from the inside, which, by forming a pressure drop, will return the metal to its original shape.
3) . As noted above, dents can also be located in hard-to-reach areas. In this case, it will be impossible to solve the problem with the help of specialized hooks. Here you will need to use a mini-elevator or a vacuum hood.
Minilifter 4) . With the help of a mini-lifter, dents can be eliminated, the diameter of which does not exceed 1-2 cm. The supports of this tool are slotted, and therefore scratches during its use are practically excluded. The kit also includes plastic adapters of various shapes, which are attached to the damaged surface with thermal glue.
5) . Next, we install a minilifter on the body, the grip of which is securely fixed to the adapter, after which, using the adjusting screw, we pull the grip up. Next, slowly raise the adapter with the handle until the body geometry is fully restored.
Vacuum extractor Remember! With the help of vacuum extractors, only minor dents can be effectively removed, since their action is based on the effect of pressure drop.
How to remove deep dents and deformations that are accompanied by chips and peeling of the paintwork? In this case, you will have to use a straightening hammer, with nozzles of various sizes and an anvil capable of supporting the sheet metal of the body while restoring its geometry.
In the process of work, the outer part of the deformed body should be on the anvil, the surface of which is covered with a cloth, which will prevent the formation of defects on the paintwork of the part.
The straightening process itself starts from the center of the dent (on the inside of the damaged area) and gradually moves to the edges of the defect. In this case, the blows should not be too strong, since excessive impact on the metal will lead to its thinning.
And at the final stage, we eliminate damage and chipped paint by puttying, grinding, priming and painting the problem area.
Removing dents with a hair dryer
Car preparation.
one). Finding dents on a car . By careful inspection, we find all the dents on the car.
2). Exploring dents . Typically, this method is used if the dents are located on the metal panels of the trunk, hood, doors, roof or fenders, but not if they are located along the edges of wide surfaces.
The maximum result of this method can be obtained when used on small dents, without large wrinkles or damage to the paint, with a surface coverage of at least 8 cm.
3). Preparing everything you need to remove dents . In this case, we need a hair dryer, strong and thick rubber gloves for safe handling of dry ice or compressed air in liquid form, aluminum foil, a bag of dry ice and a can of compressed air.
Heating and cooling of the rectified section.
one). We heat the panel with a dent . We turn on the hair dryer and direct the flow of hot air (for one to two minutes) to the dent and to the surface adjacent to it.
- We turn on the hair dryer in the middle position and place it at a distance of 13 - 18 cm from the surface of the car. Make sure that the surface does not overheat, otherwise you can damage the paint with heat.
2). Isolate the damaged area of the straightened surface (if possible) . We place a sheet of aluminum foil on the damaged area of the panel. This step is only performed if dry ice will be used instead of compressed air. This will allow us to keep warm on the straightened surface for a longer time, plus, in this way, we can protect the paint from the effects of dry ice, which can potentially damage its top layer.
3). Putting on thick protective gloves . Gloves can help protect against frostbite and other injuries that can occur when skin comes into contact with dry ice or liquefied compressed air.
4). Use dry ice or liquefied compressed air . Due to the sudden change in temperature from warm to cold, the surface of the car first expands (when heated), and then begins to shrink (when cooled).
- In cases of using dry ice, we take a bar in one hand, after which we gently wipe the surface with a dent through aluminum foil.
- When using a can of compressed air, turn the can upside down and spray onto the dented surface, which will cover the area with a layer liquid ice. Some basic scientific principles are at work here: the interaction of pressure, volume, and temperature of a gas. In normal use, the temperature of the cylinder drops as the gas escapes, and if the cylinder is turned upside down, it will self-cool.
This method requires only short-term use. In most cases on modern cars the outer panels are made of a relatively thin and light material that cools fairly quickly. Changes can be seen in about 30-50 seconds.
5). Waiting for a while . A few moments after applying dry ice or compressed air, you will hear a pop, which will tell us that the dent has been removed, that is, the material has returned to its original shape.
- In cases where dry ice has been used, the aluminum foil will need to be removed after the dent has been removed.
- If liquid ice was used with compressed air, then wait until the white foam evaporates from the surface of the car, after which we wipe its remnants with a soft cloth.
6). Repeat the process as needed . For some dents, one procedure may not be enough. In this case, the heating and cooling process can be repeated. But at the same time, one should also not overdo it with the number of repetitions, especially during the day. While quick drops will help fix your car on the outside, hypothermia is potentially damaging to the paint.
Dent removal with Pops-A-Dent
Removing dents with a magnet
To remove dents from a car body, you need a fairly strong magnet. At the same time, you can do this task with your own hands without painting only if the dent is shallow without creases in the edges, the so-called “slammer”.
1) . In order not to scratch the paint with a magnet, before starting the operation, it is recommended to lay a napkin between it and the surface of the body.
2) . We bring the magnet to the edge of the dent and pull it towards us.
3) . Then we gradually move the magnet along the circumference of the dent from the edge to the center, after which the damaged area should be restored, and the paintwork should remain intact.
Why are these technologies so popular?
First reason lies in the incredible speed of repair. Normally it will take about 2 days. Moreover, this does not depend on the complexity of the work, since it will take a lot of time to remove a small dent. And thanks to the above methods, it will take about an hour to remove a small dent, and in some cases even less.
The second reason is that no further action is required from you. That is, immediately after leveling the surface, the car is ready for operation.
Third reason lies in good quality. In many cases additional painting will not be required. That is, the damaged area is restored along with the native paintwork.
Fourth reason is at an advantageous cost. Complete renovation and the subsequent painting of the car will cost much more.
Conclusion
I would also like to note that all of the above methods are quite effective for removing small dents on their own, but none of these methods guarantees that the paint will not burst on the car body during work.
Any motorist wants his “iron horse” to always look at the highest level, but sometimes even with careful and thorough care, dents and other similar defects appear on the car body (most often they are the result of an accident). Fortunately, they can be eliminated on their own, and by the way, decently save money at the same time - local body repair at the service station now is not cheap.
An inconspicuous shallow dent on the doors or hood of a car can be quickly and easily removed using a special building hair dryer and a compressed air cylinder. Before starting work, thoroughly clean the defective area from dust and wipe it dry, dismantle the sound insulation and door trim, and raise the glass as much as possible. After that, heat the desired area of \u200b\u200bthe body well with a hair dryer, then direct the jet from the cylinder to the dent. Under air pressure, the small indentation will disappear within a few seconds. Wear protective rubber gloves when working. To repair a deeper dent, you will need a regular hammer and a mallet (a hammer with a round rubberized head), a small block of wood and a clean, soft rag. Before starting work, completely disassemble the inner lining and dismantle the car door to get maximum access to the damaged surface from the inside. Armed with a rubber mallet, begin to carefully straighten the flaw with light tapping movements (hard blows can cause the paintwork to peel off). If the roughness cannot be straightened, wrap a wooden block with a rag, attach it to the defective surface and alternately tap on it with a rubber or an ordinary hammer until the roughness is completely eliminated. One of the most effective options for self-repair of dents on the wing and body of the car is straightening. For straightening work, you will need a jack (hydraulic or rack), a special straightening hammer, various extension cords, a powerful stop and several wooden bars. Remove the wheel from the relevant side of the vehicle before repairing the body defect. After that, place a strong stop under the jack nest. Next, put the first bar under the wing right on the stiffener, the second bar - at the rear of the car wing. Then put a suitable extension on the jack and place this structure between wooden blocks. Start pumping the jack in the same way as when lifting the car - at this time, the air bursts the fender, due to which the dent is stretched. After fixing the jack, carefully trim the recess by lightly tapping it with a hammer from the inside of the wing (simultaneously apply to outside wing support). Important nuance: start such a repair with a stiffener and only then proceed to straightening other damaged areas! At the end of the work, it is not recommended to immediately loosen the jack, on the contrary, it is better to slightly tighten it to avoid deformation of the wing. You can even out the dent with the help of a non-professional device for self-removal of body defects - suction cups with hot melt adhesive. The set of this simple device includes a special glue and a gun for heating it, several suction cups of different diameters, a bridge-bracket and a spatula for removing glue. Heat the glue with a gun, apply it to the surface of a suitable suction cup (select it according to the size of the dent). Then glue the suction cup to the defective area, and after the glue has completely cured, fix the bridge-bracket on it. Next, carefully tighten the bolt on the bracket until the unevenness is completely straightened. After that, remove the suction cup and carefully scrape off the remaining glue with a spatula. During the dent alignment procedure, it is important not to overtighten the metal so as not to damage the car's paintwork. You can fix a small dent in a car fender with a football / basketball with a camera and a regular bicycle pump. Place the pre-deflated ball between the defective surface and the frame. After that, start slowly pumping up the ball - gradually filling with air, it “painlessly” for the paintwork will even out the unwanted dent. After removing the bump, deflate the ball and carefully retrieve it. Keep in mind that this method is suitable for straightening small dents that do not affect the body stiffeners.Following our instructions, even a novice motorist will be able to make minor body repairs to his “iron horse”.
During the operation of the car, scratches, chips and dents appear on the body. The reason for their appearance can be both negative environmental factors and careless driving. Chips and scratches are painted over. Repair and pulling out dents on the machine is carried out using various methods and devices that allow you to eliminate metal jams.
Before you straighten a dent on a car with your own hands, you need to know what types of damage exist. Dents on a car come in a variety of shapes and degrees of damage. Small defects, as a rule, appear on the roof and hood of the car due to hail, and small stones. Medium and large metal creases are a direct result of careless driving. Such dents on the car body can have a complex shape.
If the paint at the site of a large crease was covered with cracks and began to fall off, then, in addition to eliminating the dent, it will be necessary to restore the paintwork. Otherwise, on the part of the body where the damage has occurred, pockets of corrosion are formed.
Ways to remove simple dents on a car
Repair of small dents, performs without repainting the damaged area. Correction of the defect is performed using PDR technology (paintless dent repair), that is, without repainting the restored part. To perform the work used:
- Magnets. Allows you to even out small damage to the body. a small piece of lint-free cloth is placed under the fixture.
- Glue applicator, the device is attached to the car body with glue. After the adhesive has dried, the specialist slightly pulls the applicator in his direction, thereby leveling the body crease.
- Suction cups allow you to correct simple defects. The vacuum pulling method removes metal creases formed after small stones, hail and icicles fall into the machine.
- A building hair dryer, with the help of a tool, eliminates defects that have a different shape. Warm air is blown over the damage, after which they are immediately doused with cold air from a can.
- Hooks. These tools are useful for pulling out hidden parts. They get boxes, and stampings from hidden areas of the body surface.
- Fender. It has a cigar-shaped shape, and is designed to flatten outwardly arched metal.
- Rubber mallet. With reverse side of the damaged area, a rubber backing is installed. With gentle strokes level the surface. The method of removing dents on a car is applicable for both small and deep defects.
Also to the list necessary tools refer to the Pops a Dent defect alignment kit. It includes nozzles, plastic bracket, glue. Repair is carried out as follows:
- The center of the damaged area is carefully degreased.
- Heat up the adhesive. To do this, the glue stick is inserted into the gun, and connected to the mains.
- The heated composition is applied to a rubber nozzle, glued to the center of the damage in a circular motion.
- After 2-3 minutes, a bracket is attached to the overlay.
- The lamb bracket is screwed onto the nozzle until the defect is eliminated.
- 5 minutes after completion of work, the device is removed from the body.
The use of special Pops a Dent equipment is advisable in case of frequent dents on the car body. If the defects of this plan appear rarely, it will be more profitable to use other technologies for pulling damage.
How to fix a severe dent with your own hands
To eliminate the deepest dent, impact pads of various shapes and hammers are used. Spoons are used as a forged tool. They have a different shape and size, depending on the type of damage.
In the center of the damage, the metal is thinner than at the edges. Before straightening, it is necessary to pull the iron to the center of the defect. To do this, use a gas burner. Next, perform the alignment of the dents.
After rough alignment of the defect, it is covered with putty.
Repairing dents with a jack
Pull out the dent of the car body with your own hands, a jack will help. The device is used to repair deep damage to the wings of the car.
Before work, dismantle front pointer turn and headlight. From the side of the dent, the jack rests on the heel (a rubber bar is preliminarily placed under it), the lever of the device must rest against the opposite edge of the opening. The operation is stopped after straightening the defect, and the damaged area is covered with putty.
Removing dents on a car with a reverse hammer
Straightening dents with a reverse hammer is performed when the driver has difficulty accessing the damage site, or the repaired parts cannot be dismantled. This type of body dent repair usually requires subsequent painting of the repaired part. To straighten a dent, follow these steps:
- Clean, dry and degrease the surface to be restored. Remove traces of corrosion.
- One end of the reverse hammer is attached to the center of the damage. Perform the operation using a special suction cup or applicator.
- Editing is carried out by gradually increasing blows of the weight on the hammer handle.
- After the restoration of the outer side of the body is completed, the hammer is disconnected.
The applicator or suction cup is only effective in straightening the body if the damage is not serious. In the presence of deep and complex defects, the hammer is welded to the surface, or they cling to technological holes using special hooks.
Straightening
A process that allows you to remove a dent on a car and repair a local area of \u200b\u200bthe body. Work, with a certain experience and time, is carried out with their own hands according to the following algorithm:
- Wash and dry the work surface.
- Degrease the damage.
- Carry out body repairs.
Straightening of small damages can be carried out without subsequent staining of the damaged area. With the help of reverse hammers, hooks, a building hair dryer, suction cups and applicators, rubber hammers, the defect is eliminated.
If you need to fix a deep dent on a car, accompanied by creases, peeling of the paintwork and tearing of the metal, then use the following tool:
- Hammer and anvils various forms and sizes.
- Spoons.
- Jack.
- File.
- Welding machine.
- grinding device.
The anvils are applied to the outside of the dent, and from the center, with gentle strokes, a rough leveling of the surface is carried out. Spoons act as a substrate for a percussion instrument, but they are used to eliminate defects that have appeared in hard-to-reach places. After alignment, inspect the repaired area. If there are breaks in the metal, they are welded together. Remove excess bulges with a file. Next, you need to putty the body to level the working surface. The treated area is sanded, primed, painted and polished.
Correct putty
Before you putty the car body with your own hands, you need to prepare. This will help to avoid visible defects after painting the car:
- Sand and remove excess metal bulges.
- Degrease and clean the treated surface. In some cases, the operation is performed several times.
- Repair the corrected area of damage by applying putty evenly in several layers.
- After it dries, the surface is polished. It is important to ensure that the puttied layer is on the same level with the rest of the surface of the car body.
- Apply primer in two layers.
- Paint the surface with a spray gun. Lacquer is applied and the surface is polished.
Replacement of a part or part of it
If there is more serious damage, removing dents will not help restore the integrity of the part. In this case, the body element, or its most severely damaged part, is replaced with a new one. When replacing, it is necessary to find a part identical to the one being replaced. If a specific area is being replaced, then the patch is cut out of the same metal. Then it is welded to the restored part.
Minor damage to the body, chips, scratches and dents on the car can be repaired without repainting. Previously undamaged parts of the hull are subject to restoration. If the paint cracks, breaks and kinks appear, it will not work to repair without painting.