Dent Removal

I'm by far no expert on dent removal, but have tried many methods I've found in metal working books. I've never got the heat/wet quench method to work very well, but that's probably because of operator error. The best way I've found to take dents out of thinner sheet metal is to use heat and have a good, flat body hammer and a few dollys of different shapes to provide a good backing to what I'm tapping. You won't get 100% of all dents completely out, and some dents are just too bad to completely be erased.

For round dents I like to take them out working from the edges inward. If they're bumped in pretty good I'll use some heat, concentrated in the middle, just enough to make a red spot in the center. You'll be able to see which way the metal is stressed by whether the dent wants to pull back out or sink further inward. With the worst of the dent heated until red, I start tapping around the edges of the dent on whichever side it wanted to pull towards, with the dolly on the opposite side. I keep the hammer face flat with the surface and direct the blows inward towards the center of the dent, working towards the center. This way with the middle still red it helps to shrink the steel back to flat, because a dent is basically a stretched area. It takes a few dents to learn how much heat to use, because too much can cause ripples and leave it uglier than when you started. Once its cooled I take a file and rasp it over the area I just did, it will show any remaining high spots that need attention. Be patient, let each area cool before doing another.

Long creases are the worst, I can make them better but it's pretty hard to get them all. When I straightened the hood on my 5U D2 it had been beat so badly that the whole thing would spring inward or outward but wouldn't stay flat. I was able to remove the dents and shrink it back to flat using heat and hammers/dollys, it came out real good and doesn't spring any more, but if you look up close you can still see traces of the worst dings it had.

Normally you want to use the heat to shrink the metal that has been streached beyond hammer & dolly work. Toby gave you some good advice. You use the hammer on and hammer off method of working the dent out. The dolly supports the lowest part of the dent and you hammer around the rim to work the metal back in line.
As for a long dent you go from last in to first out. You work the long dent out from the last spot in and it should relieve some of the stress on the crease and help to bring it back in shape.
Years ago when I was learning body repair. one of the things I had to learn is to do metal finishing on a part. Hammer & dolly, pick & file.
None of my hammers are big hammers that I use to straighten sheet metal. They are small and work better than big ones to work the dents out.
Terry

Excellent body work replies.
I think I have learned more from these few paragraphs than all of my books put together.

Thanks
😊 😊 😊

Thanks for the info I have had the fun of working with bondo,and didn't want
to go that way . I had seenit done as a kid I thought I might try it, I don't think my wife would like it if i tried my hand on
Her new Van...

In my years as a body man I have found that with large objects like your hood I get good results if I use a steel top table or some smooth concrete to be my dolly. Maybe have someone help to keep the worked areas flat down so you can work them down. I do use a 3# hammer but not slam it just gentley work the dent to the flat surface. The heat comes in when you get things close to straight but the mrtal is stretched. Heat shrinks the excess back into the center of the dent. When you get the oil can effect you are getting close to the right config so try more hot spots to tighten things up. I will also use some sand paper like 80 grit on the back side to see where the highs are then work them down more. Once you get closer then I go to my smaller hammers and dollys to refine things. Hope you get er straightened out some. Charlie

Cross hatch hammers shrink also slapping files- used with above methods