Sorry to say it, but if you are a Paintless Dent Repair Newbie,
this article is a bit in your face, but if you appreciate the
truth, read onward. If NOT, click out and see u laters. Paintless
Dent Repair is edgy. And thankfully so. If it was simple, the cost
would drop and a simple repair would be $15 instead of $200so glad
it is tough to master..keeps the lazy techs out, looking into other
get rich opps instead of PDR. So, I examine this.Common
shortcomings of PDR Newbies.
1. Underestimations. This term is wide, intentionally.
Underestimation of the EFFORT and BREADTH are primarily what I am
referring to, but there are additional ones.
2. A) The money.. Most peoples have NO clue what a good PDR Tech
can generate. When I personally do PDR, I usually pull over $3k a
day. And Im NOT talking about hail damages. When doing hail
repairs, I get upset if Im not bringing at least $3500 when pushing
1000s of dents in a workday.
3. B) The PDR competition. Most people in PDR are simply bad.
And lucky for them really, it usually doesnt slow them down..until
a better tech rolls into town (see our dent repair school for
details J )
4. C) The PDR Market. I get emails from new techs interested in
PDR, and others who may have gone through a different/substandard
school, looking for PDR markets where they can get ahold of real
PDR. Let me say this truly: Auto Dealers are just 1 market
opportunity. There are TONS more. I will leave it at that for this
article
5. Technical PDR requirements. 20/20 vision. Your eyes better be
20-20 or corrected to that level or PDR is not an option. It is a
VISUAL process, so if you CANT SEE, you wont DO it.
6. TIME for practice. This one is commonly overlooked. Dealers
send us PDR in house trainees all the time for schooling. Then,
when the student returns and asks for time to practice and develop
their skills and speed, the management says, sure, but for now, get
back to your normal job and we will get you practice time later.
Well, later never comes, and the dealer tech often doesnt get the
time or attention he needs to continue his skills, and the in-house
program goes sideways. What does this mean to you, as a newb? PDR
Requires TIME. ANYTHING that you do, and want to do well, will
require TIME. Give PDR Time, and you will get RESULTS. And by
results, I mean MONEY.
7. Rushing. PDR Newbs rush their work, and the results often
suffer, Slow work means fast results for newbs. Take your time.
8. Bad tool selection. For some idea, I see techs in the field
using the wrong type of tool tip for specific damage. Remember, we
are re-creating texture, so use a tip that will best achieve that.
And tape and caps on tools are a Professional-techs best
friends.
9. Massive pressure. So many newbies like to employ massive
pressure to locate their tool tip. Hint- DONT! If you cant see your
tip easily, take a page out of our training book- go get an
aluminum hood and try it out for size..I wont spoil the fun, but
you will do better than you did with the steel itemtry it.
10. Improper tap down technique. DingWizard teaches newbs to use
a Master tool which is a large dolly type of tool to push down the
entire dent. Eventually they show you how to do it like the rest of
us, with a tap down pencil or punch. Take your time, and if
possible, tap down by pushing, not using a hammer. You can modulate
the pressure better when pushing.
11. Improper reading technique. Many newbies try and jump to a
board after learning on a lite. Stay with the lite for a while..it
keeps the learning consistent and theres no reason to go to a board
until you are very proficient with a lite.
12. Thats all for now! There are more Paintless Dent Repair newb
pitfalls I can assure you, but work on these to get started!
