Ok Guys, I have been looking thorugh some posts here on ding and dent repair, and thought I could clear up some big misconceptions about dent repair.
I have noticed a lot of people mention suction cups and PULLING dents out. Some have mentioned paintless dent repair and others gule puller kits. Here is some usefull information about deciding what to do and when to do it.
When you get a ding or dent, the metal gets streatched.. similar to poking your finger in a plastic bag. The metal needs to be manipulated back at the same time getting the surounding metal to absorb the extra metal.. such as pulling the area arouns the plastic to make it apear flat again. If you poke the plastic too hard, no matter how much you manipulate it, it may not get falt. Dents are the same, if it is small and deep, it is harder to repair than a large soft dent.
Glue puller kits sell from $20 to $299. They are all pretty much the same and work on the same theorys. The Key to getting a GOOD repair with one of these is knowing how and where to release pressure around the dent BEFORE pulling it. Also, temp and humididty are factors in how well the glue will adhear to the pannel and pull. Lower humidity and moderate temps 50-70 degrees are optimal. Higher temps and the glue may not cool enough and just pull like chewing gum, cold temps and the metal will be very stiff. If you DO get a good pull, it will most likely pull some of the dent HIGHER than the rest of the pannel, you will need to know how to tap the metal back down. I do not really recomend these pullers unless you know what you are doing with it.
A qualified paintless dent repair technician works dents out much different than many people think. They ussually access the dent from BEHIND the dent with rods and flat bars. The ussually have rounded or very pointed tips on the tool and use a reflection board or light source to "see" the dent and the tip of the tool. They will rotate between tapping down highs, and pushing up lows to repair the dent / ding. This is a very specialized skill, and can take up to a year of practice to be able to do correctly and ussually takes 2 years of daily work to become proficient at. It is NOT easy! nor are the training or tools to do it correctly cheep. A tool set runs anywhere from 2,000 up for all the tools needed to access most areas, and training runs about 500 a day for a qualified trainer. most train 2 weeks on basics then practice DAILY for many many months before they can work for dealers or themselves.
When you see a qulified tech do his trade, it will look as easy as watching a musician play an instrument, but it is very skilled work. I like to compare it to that, or my other favorite saying is, just because you bought a snap on tool set, doesn't make you a mechanic.
As far as pricing to have a dent repaired, it varies depending on how many companies are in your area and the quality of the tech. Generally down south and out west there are more companies, and thus the pricing is cheeper. I would say for most door dings, you will pay anywhere from $40-80. The harder hit the dent, and the location can be just as important as the size when pricing. At any rate, the cost vs body shop is always MUCH cheeper, and ussually does not exceed 1/3 the cost of a body shop repair.
Also, if you decide to try your hand at a glue puller, and do not like the results, you may not be able to get a paintless dent repair tech to fix your mistake all the time, and ussually even if you can, the repair will not come out as well as it would if you had taken it to them first, gennerally because starting a dent repair it is important to remove the pressure points FIRST.

I hope this information helps you all, and I recomend when looking for a good dent repair tech in your area, that you check with a high end local detail shop or your dealership. Generally the dealer will mark the price up a bit, but you know you are getting a good tech. The detail shops will most likely know who can do quality work also, without as much of a markup.

As for anyone in Southern New Jersey, I can be found on the web at www.dingguy.com . I am also the local Precision Mercedes tech.
David Pinto

INFOMERCIAL

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Are you kidding? The pull kits are a SCAM! I had all my minor dings removed by a process, where, they insert steel rods, and reverse "push the dent out from the opposite side of the ding. It not only works great, but you really don;t want the "bondo fill repaint" thing on your Mercedes.

The do-it-yourself kits are a scam.....but the dentless repair guys who do the work can be very good...they usually charge by the panel............but like everything its the skill of the guy doing the work....

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Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

BUT!......an accurate one.
For once.

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'68 220D
'68 220D(another one)
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Current rides:
'06 Lexus RX330
'93 Ford F-250
'96 Corvette
'99 Polaris 700 RMK sled
2011 Polaris Assault
'86 Yamaha TT350(good 'ol thumper)

My dent puller sends me a Xmas card each year...a testament to the business I send him just on my OWN vehicles!

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2016 Mustang (32K) - Daughter's car

I tried hard not so sound like an infomercial, and yes I gave myself a plug for anyone close to my location (probabbly not even 1%). I just thought it would be good information for anyone with a sweet ride that got a typical "Parking lot ding". For some the $20 glue puller can give them a repair acceptable to them. I have one, I use it about 5% of the time when there is no other access, and believe me, it might make it look better, but unless you knock down any crowns, it will not make it go away all together.

Sounds like there are some people here that know and use paintless dent techs. I am sure they are glad they know them! And yes, always check references of the tech- no just the company- as some larger companies have employees that may just be out of training, and it is very possible to crack the paint, or make a dent look like an "oatmeal cookie"

I don't mind an infomercial that is as detailed as yours. the ones I hate(!!!) are the one-liners that want me to buy Bondo, sell Amway or transfer Nigerian bank accounts. Yours didn't sound like that. You put some effort into the detailed descriptions and closed with a plug. If you're good, I hope you make lots of money. If you suck, I hope your neighbors let us know.

My vote is not to flame you.

LOL!! I've been doing dent repair for about 4 years, and just added leather repair last year. I think I've got it down.. but am not one to brag.. Check my work
Most of the pictures on there are 2 years old or more. The PT cruiser is the only one from last summer, and probably the best picture on there. If you click on the pictures it will give you a full sized pic with a lot more detail as far as seeing how the dent is in a body line of the fender and such. No suction cup or glue puller would fix that for ya!

Thanks for the info. Can you share with us your method for leather repair? I've tinkered with it myself but always curious about how others do it.

Good, accurate info.

A GOOD paintless dent repair tech is worth his weight in gold!

Good luck to you in your business venture.

I have a whole Interior repair system for my buisness. Different processes and compounds for different repair. But basicaly I determine the type of repairs the leather needs, perform them then re-dye the seat. I mix my own dyes by eye (that's the most tricky!). I have heat repair compounds for larger tears and holes, and air dry compounds for smaller tears and cracking.
Same as the dent repair though, bought a full system for about 2000 and a weeks training for another 1500. Competent training in anything makes all the difference. Not that one can't figure things out on thier own, but for a buisness, you need to know what your doing, and you need to be able to do it in a timely, cost effective manner.