Tommy Finishes Up 4 Week PDR Training

I'm a bit late (3 days to be exact) posting this article about Tommy Jue finishing his 4 week paintless dent repair training. I had a quick moment to give you a little feedback before the video comes out.

First of all, I want to thank Tommy for giving me the opportunity to train him. It takes a lot of commitment and trust to fly far away from home and stay in a different city and meet with someone who you really don't know. So thanks so much Tommy for coming and I had a great time training you as well.

I mentioned to Tommy before he made the commitment that pdr training would not be easy and very challenging. None the less, I also mentioned it would be very rewarding and self satisfying. After the pdr training, Tommy had another term called, "gratifying" and I think he said it perfectly.

I don't have my students work easy dents. Tommy was no exception. In the last week, I had him do 4 retail jobs in a row. All big dents that involved a combo with glue puling, crown removal, creases and finishing. Some where more complex than the other but I could see his skills improving over each experience, and not to mention his confidence. Now I'm not saying Tommy was able to remove every dent perfect but if you were there, you can definitely tell he will be successful in PDR. The first two weeks alone were about pin pointing and finishing deep pitted dings. We all know, smaller dents can be much more difficult that bigger dents. Because in the end, it comes down to finishing. Just like the game golf, it don't matter if you can drive the ball 300+ yards. If you can't put the ball in the hole, then you can't finish.

My intentions is to help my students see and get the experience with all types of dents. If I have my students work small and non complex dents, then they would be in for a long and hard road ahead. Although, I'm not saying my students won't have a challenging road but there is a difference between challenging and confusing.

My goals as a PDR trainer is to help my PDR students understand the "why" factor. It takes many steps to do a dent correctly and many good habits to stay consistent. You will see video of Tommy's road to his PDR career soon in the near future. For now, please check out the photo gallery below.

4 Week PDR Training Update w / Tommy Jue

Well, Tommy and I have been very busy lately working on all types of dents. At this point we are doing almost anything that comes our way. Tommy's pdr training is going well and I keep challenging him more and more. For the most part he is pretty consistent and as expected, he does have a hard time at things here and there. I say it's expected because I don't want my students to really ever get the impression every dent will be easy.

Today, I had him work on some complex dents. They looked easy to most and even fooled me. Flat dents with crowns are very deceiving and demand a lot of cross checking with careful tap downs and pushing. If not performed correctly, flat dents will always be very noticeable and wavy. I did video Tommy's progress as usual but it will need some editing. My intensions are to be honest with my training and what all pdr students go through. All get frustrated as one point or another, it's just some handle their emotions better than others.

In the near future, you will see how how it went for Tommy. Stay tuned as usual and meantime, enjoy the slide show. Thanks for reading. Please feel free to comment if you like. Thank you.

Tommy Jue PDR Video Documentary - 1 of 4 week PDR Training

Here is the video during Tommy's first week of paintless dent repair / removal pdr training. I'm already filming his second and third week of paintless dent repair training and you will notice his progress as we go along. Look out during the weeks to come to see how he does.

Tommy Jue PDR Update Week 1 - Paintless Dent Repair / Removal Training

Well, it's been already one week since Tommy has begun his pdr adventure. I am actually editing and getting ready to post his experience and thoughts about his pdr training and he really is enjoying it. He reminded me to mention it because he said he forgot to say that on the video. At this point, I am very happy with Tommy's hard effort and dedication. I have challenged him relentlessly and he has so far proven PDR will be right for him.

Reading the line board properly with proper techniques over and over turns into good habits. Understanding and perfecting it creates permanent habits. The first week of paintless dent repair training is always the most challenging. A newbie has to get accustomed to the awkward positions, different ways they see with their eyes and build a much more tolerance for patience. Once this part is mastered, it just becomes a routine and almost a trance. This is the stage Tommy is getting into. The more he gets the experience, the better he becomes.
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First Week of PDR Training Going Well for Tommy

So far so good for Tommy Jue who is picking up pdr really well. I mainly have Tommy doing deep dings on different panels all week because this is the most common type of dent he will face consistently. Removing deep dents are very hard to keep clean from start to finish. It's most difficult when a student gets to the last 10-5% and has to knock down between pushes. A dent can get very messy in a hurry if not executed with accurate tap downs and pushes.

For Tommy, he has shown very good patience and incredible tool tip control. He is ahead of the average learning curve and if he stays at this pace, it will allow him the benefit of learning more advance pdr techniques and repairs with a good 3 1/2 weeks to go.

Later I will introduce him to body lines and creases by next week. Next post will be within a couple of days so check back soon and I will give another update.

Official PDR Movie Trailer for Learning Paintless Dent Repair / Removal

Yes, I know some of you think I go over the top with my videos but my purpose is to help bring anyone's awareness up who may consider this pdr skill. Besides, wouldn't you want someone like me rather than someone else, who might not be as excited or have the same passion about paintless dent repair? I just want others to understand that I really want my students to make it.

I see so many people who really want the best pdr training but can't afford it. Unfortunately, think they can still make it in this business just as well if they went to a cheaper and shorter pdr training course.  What they can't compare is the personal training, hands on experience and a non set curriculum. In other words, it must be designed around you. Nobody will understand how your skill level is until you are there in person. So how can a pdr course have a set way of doing things? Also, it should not be taught with multiple people unless its organized from the same group.

Currently I will be starting a new student named, Tommy. He's from Savannah, Georgia and attending the 4 week pdr training course. I look forward to training him and excited to document his progress as well like my recent past student, Dan Ontrop. Matter of fact he's the guy in the video above. Stay tuned as I will keep the blog updated often during the next 4 weeks. 

Body Lines / Creases / Crowns with Paintless Dent Repair / Removal

It's been a while since I took the time to post a photo of one of my paintless dent repairs and I apologize. I have been super busy between numerous things and so I hope you understand. Anyhow, here is a basic diagram about what to look for on a body line with a crease going against it. I always look for crowns because that is what holds the pressure and the tightness that keeps it locked. The deeper the dent, the more lines you will notice around the center.

I have the full article and breakdown about what I used for this pdr repair.  So I really encourage you to please follow this link and read the rest. Thank you.


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4 week Paintless Dent Repair Training Video - Dent Removal One on One

When I was pdr training Dan Ontrop, I decided it would be very beneficial for everyone if I documented his 4 week paintless dent repair training. So I captured most of Dan's important part of his pdr training stages. This video jumps to almost the end of his paintless dent repair training and really shows what's involved.

I want to educate the public about how hard pdr really is. Why it takes more than just a plain desire before you consider making a career out of it. And it all starts (if you are committed) from where you train and how long you train. I believe 4 weeks is the best option I offer. It allows you to really grasp what habits you need to obtain to perfect what you learn. So much to learn and so little time. I've been performing paintless dent removal for nearly two decades and I still learn new things as long as I am willing.

With pdr, you have to have an open mind and go at a slow pace. Paintless dent removal is an art and if you don't respect it, it will kick your butt up and down. Oh and I did mention, it's not easy? Nor is it easy to teach. I too had to not only learn how to do pdr but understand how to teach the art because not all students are the same. Matter of fact every student is different and there are different techniques for training different type of students. My step father was an excellent pdr tech and one of the greats but he could not teach worth a lick. I guess that is what really taught me to understand how not to teach.

Between this article and the video below, I hope this really helps you get some insight about real one on one paintless dent repair training.  Go for as long as you can and check your market and see if it's not already saturated.

Deep Body Line PDR Training With Dano

Today was a fantastic pdr training day with Dan Ontrop. He's in his 4th week of paintless dent repair / removal training and he did a great job on a deep body line dent.

It was time to see how Dan could stand up on a super deep and sharp dent across a body line. I expected Dan to be on this for at least 3-4 hours. He removed this dent 95% in about 1 1/2 hours! Now if you have never done pdr, then you might think that's a long time for such a small dent. To other experienced pdr techs, that's impressive for a pdr training newbie who has only less than 20 true days of experience.

I had Dan do this dent outside in a pretty warm environment on a silver car. In other words, it was pretty challenging to concentrate on a dent with those kind of conditions. Silver vehicles are a very challenging on the eyes and you really need to focus to read the line board and dent correctly. But, Dan came through and his patience had been paying off. Take a look at his impressive progress.

-- Myke Toledo
858-699-2054
http://www.denttime.com

3 week PDR Training Going Well

For those that are following how Dan is doing with his paintless dent repair training, I have an update. Today was the official start of his third week of pdr training.







The first week we did a lot of ding removals. Some were easy and some were challenging. As I train Dan, I remind him that it's all about the quality and he has definitely kept that in mind. His pushes are incredibly accurate without making irreversible mistakes like; paint cracks and guessing.







The second week was all about learning to control the tool tip and perfecting how to finish. PDR starts with a foundation and builds from there. I can not teach a student beyond the basics without them Knowing how to perfect the fundamentals of paintless dent repair. Learning the art of paintless dent removal starts from the basics of being able to read the line board, tool tip location, tool usage and developing muscle memory. All these factors when taught correctly build a good habit. Advanced paintless dent repair can not be achieved until the basics have been mastered.

Dan has made impressive progress thanks to his dedication and disciplined patience without giving up. Staring at a panel with lines going across the damaged area can take toll on a pdr trainee. As I mention in most of my articles or posts, pdr is not easy to learn but learning from the right instructor CAN make it all the better.

Today we had a great opportunity to work and train on a late model Mercedes Benz. Dan who did 85% of the dent. He started on this dent at about 10:45am and finished around 3pm. No lunch break in between, just a couple of small water breaks. Now I don't starve my pdr students, it's just we eat a big breakfast before we do pdr training.

Now the videos you are about to see are raw and unedited. Dan did most of this dent as you will see. We worked on hidden crowns, glue pulled, worked the body line, tapped down like about 500-800 times and crossed check like crazy.

Check out Dan's pdr training progress and you be the judge. Please visit our main website for more info

-- Myke Toledo
858-699-2054
http://www.denttime.com

PDR School - What You Should Know About Paintless Dent Repair Training

Cheap Paintless Dent Repair Training Beware

I am writing this article to future pdr trainees as a big warning. If you plan on going to a "paintless dent repair training school", then you really want to read this. My topics will be about the good, bad and the ugly.

Here is a clear warning - Listen to your head and weigh out what makes sense. I don't know if you realize this but PDR can not be learned correctly with more than one student at a time. OK, actually let me rephrase that because there have been miracles in this world that happen so I won't say impossible. If you want to get the most of a pdr training course, then you should settle no less for one on one pdr training. There should be no reason for more than one student unless the pdr school is in it for the money. The more students they can get in, the bigger and faster their pockets get. Also, you need to understand PDR is an art and takes a lot of patience. By no means is it easy at all. If you have heard that pdr can be learned in 1-2 weeks, you are in for a big, big surprise. Matter of fact, you will be getting just your feet wet. Imagine packing years of techniques into 2 FAST weeks? Oh but wait a minute.. I offer 2 week courses. Yes , but I will get to that later.

Read the full article here

Tundra Dent Repair

I was working on this dent at about 3:30 in the afternoon. It took a little longer than expected because there was a brace structure half way against the dent. It still turned out fine but was more challenging than I would have liked. But then again that is pdr for you. Here are some iPhone video clips how the repair looked before and after. It's my run n gun video so please don't be disappointed because lately I have not busted out the good camera rigs.

This dent took about an hour and 15 minutes and I charged $275. Yes considering this took me less than an hour and a half, some people would get upset. Some of my customers questions the cost vs. the time it took me to repair a dent. I have to remind them politely that a dent repair like this really didn't take me an hour and half. It really took me 19 years. The truth is, would you rather have someone know what they are doing who is experienced and can do a repair in a timely manor or have a person who does not know what they are doing and take all day without the same outcome? I don't charge by the hour, instead, I charge in regards to the experience it will take me to remove the dent.

Dent TIme Greatest Dents (Part 1)

I decided to put together a quick and easy video slide show together. I was looking through my past repairs and thought I would put together some of my favorite pdr dent repairs. Each pdr repair has a little story about it and I learned a ton from each one of these repairs. The ones that look less complex were actually the most challenging and some were definitely as hard as they looked.

Check out our dentrepairsandiego.com site as well as DentTime.com. Take care1

4 Week PDR Training Ride a Long - Week 1 Mitch Hawthorn

Lately I have been doing lots of training and it has been hard for me to post often. So when I get a chance, I like to post what I think is important. Especially to those who are interested in pdr training. Again, paintless dent repair / removal training is not easy to learn. And if you don't have the patience in general, then save yourself a lot frustration and don't get into pdr. I don't mean to discourage you but there are too many so called schools out there who promise the world but in the end, say, "you got to practice." But if you leave confused and not making progress, then how can you measure what is right and what is wrong pdr training? This is why I am posting real people with real experiences.

Anyhow, now that I put my two cents in, here is a quick video I did with Mitch Hawthorn who is attending my one on one pdr training. Through out the month you will see updates and his progress. Please email me if you have any questions or simply comment below.

Thanks!
Myke Toledo