Customer Reviews

Ding King Dent Repair Kit, Fixes minor dings and dents in cars

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(14)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(33)

 

 

I had a small but noticeable dent in the fender and I wanted a cheap way to mostly fix it before committing to a full body shop. Dent King can do some jobs, but not all. For what it does, it's a pretty good product. If you fall into the category where it can help, it's worth it.

It's a "do it yourself" dent repair kit for your car. It "pulls" dents back out and is a fairly good solution for dents that ONLY require pulling "back out". This includes door and shopping cart dings you'd get in a parking lot. It has to be minor, no larger than a grapefruit, and only cosmetic dent damage to a metal panel where there is NO crease. It does not address scratches.

The ideal dent for the Dent King to repair is damage from a blunt object, like a rounded plastic corner of a shopping car dinged the middle of your door and left an indentation that is small, did not cause creases, not on a crease.

I think this is but one tool of an arsenal of tools that body shops use. That means, it is only applicable to a specific type of damage. If the dent looks like it just needs to be "sucked back out a bit", then the Dent King probably can help.

Clean the surface with the included cleaner, which smells like regular rubbing alcohol. Use the supplied glue gun and special glue sticks and dab the melted glue onto the end of the "puller" stick and adhere to the dent where you want to pull it. Allow it to cool, then straddle the "puller stick" with the 2 point brace/bridge, and screw on the tightener to the puller stick. This will pull on the dent via the stick until the glue pops off. This action "snaps" the dent out a bit; depending upon how much force the glue was able to supply. This relies on a good paint job (OEM), as it's essentially pulling on the surface of the paint.

It ends up you will need to do this multiple times to slowly work out the dent

I can still see my dents but they are greatly reduced; that is, for the ones that the Dent King could be applied to. I don't think "good as new" will ever be achieved with Dent King, but it definitely can reduce "ugly ding" to "little annoying ding".

This is one of those products that is just a tool, and really is more dependent upon the skill of the operator. For the price paid, it delivered value for its cost. But that's it.

I bought this kit to remove a small but very noticeable dent in our 07 Jetta in the rear quarter panel. Purchased at a local auto store for 20 bucks as the dent wasn't large enough to warrant a trip to the body shop.

Following the directions in the box, I was able to pull the dent in two tries to about 90-95% of its original shape. A small depression is still noticeable, but the Ding King states that this will probably be the case. Bottom line, for $20 this product works as advertised.

Now, there are several reviews here and on other sites that claim the Ding King did not work for them at all, citing various reasons. When you read the review, it's clear they did NOT follow the directions at all. I think if you follow the directions it will work as advertised, which means it will pull small dents out to about 90% of perfection without damaging your paint.

If the glue didn't stick to your car, you probably didn't use the solution to clean the paint surface first (nowhere does it tell you to sand your paint off as one reviewer suggested he tried). Another possibility is that you didn't wait for the proper temperature range. The instructions suggest you try between 50-80 degrees in the shade.

The glue gun worked fine for me, you squeeze the melted glue onto the plastic tab and immediately place over the dent, holding it there for 60 seconds as the directions say. Then wait at least 5 minutes, I waited about 10. Again, if you try to pull the dent without waiting then it probably won't work for you.

Proceed to pull the dent until the glue releases. In both of my pulls, the glue stayed on the car. I simply poured a little of the cleaning solution on the glue, then pulled slowly and used the included scraper to gently peel the glue up. It came off cleanly with no damage to my paint, both times.

If you don't follow the directions, how do you expect it to work? This product won't pull a dent 100%, but it will do a really good job of fixing it to about 90% or so if you just do what it tells you to. For $20, I'd use this product again.

Usaully I avoid informercial products like the plague, any thing that needs that much convincing can't be worth the price. However, I was desperate to cut costs and bought one of these at auction. They run $8-19.50 plus shipping but can be had new for $17.50 plus shipping. I paid $8 +.

The infomercial says things like show room new, and I suppose that may be true under lab conditions with only certain kinds of dents. Here are my results.

Two dents first about size of grapefruit shallow with two points (small sharp dings) other large cucumber deeper with two points. Ding king will not work on points. First dent popped out great on first try, smooth with no waves, even the points were less pronounced only visible on close inspection. On the basis of that alone, it was well worth the cost. Second dent was less satisfying but that may be due to technique. The tool removed the dent but some waving visible but may be missed on cursury inspection. Was able to reduce one of the points with the knockdown tool but still visible. Possibly if I had worked from outter edges more slowly (distance wise) the waving would not be there. This dent took about 10-12 trys. This dent was also the least promising of repair considering depth, width and length. Even so, I may go back and try removing the waving with smaller applications of glue. Clean up took considerable effort and lots of Ding King solution (ie. Alcohol), not exactly like the infomercial either.

Conclusion... The repairs do NOT look show room new but definitely left vehicle looking a lot better and saleable. The Ding King will not work on sharp edged dents, it says so in the directions but don't remember the infomercial saying so. So beware. The Ding King solution is merely green alcohol, replacement glue sticks are outrageously expensive but... considering cost/benefit... worth it. So it makes a usefull addition to the garage tool kit.

First, let me start with a little review. The tool is useful, but after a while, the pads fall apart. The bottom of the pads are actually lined with some sort of coating that may start to peel off, making it useless. Although the solution provided doesn't seem to last long enough, you can use a mixture of rubbing alcohol and water if you run out. The glue is not your standard hot glue, but they give you a generous amount and I have yet to run out.

I've used the Ding King with varying success in the past. One reason is because there is a learning curve. In addition to the directions, there are a few things to keep in mind.
First, I'm surprised with the number of people having various difficulties with the glue. As far as making it stick, clean the application area AND the pad with the supplied solution or rubbing alcohol (I would recommend REWAXING the area after the repair is done!). Allow the glue gun to heat completely before use. Apply glue to the pad and IMMEDIATELY place it on the dent, allow to dry for several minutes (very important). If the glue sticks to your car and is a pain to get off, that means you cleaned the metal well.. But removal IS VERY EASY: SOAK a rag sufficiently in the solution (or diluted rubbing alcohol if you run out) so that you maintain a "wet edge" with the rag. No need to soak the whole thing-- Just a spot large enough. Squeeze a little bit out of the rag onto the rop of the glue spot.. Begin to peel it off. Its easy- I've never had a problem with removal.

As far as pulling the dent out too far- If you do get the glue to maintain a good hold and get the wing nut very tight, don't wait for it to pop off. While its still tight, pour a little solution between the pad and the car so that the bond releases. Practice so that you get a feel for the right torque before releasing the bond. You want it tight enough so that the metal is pulled out, but not so much that you pull the metal out too far.

Hope these tips help a little. This little tool is pretty incredible, but it takes patience and practice to find a method that works for you.

-k

I was very upset to see a dent the size of a softball on the hood of my new BMW. The dent itself was not all that noticeable, but nonetheless an eye sore for me. After reading very mixed reviews about the Ding King, I had my doubts whether or not it would be effective. I was also very afraid that it would compound the damage. Because of the outrageously low price point, I took a gamble. I'm glad that I did. After three pops, my dent was gone. The process around using the product was simple, though a tad time consuming. I highly recommend this product to anyone with minor dents in their vehicle. I'm not sure if it'll work for everyone, but it worked for me. At $20, you can't go wrong.

I bought the Ding King beings somewhat skeptical, but I thought, "It's only $20". I had a dent in car that was an ideal candidate for this product. It was round and shallow, perfectly symmetrical.

I bought the Ding King thinking that even if it didn't end up perfect, it would be better than it was.

To my surprise, it worked perfectly. There is now no indication that there was ever a dent in that area.

We live in a city and we got a minor ding on the side of the car. We bought this kit a few years ago somewhere other than Amazon (think a auto store). Anyway we did what it said and did it several times. It did take some of the ding out but not all of it. We barely got the glue off from it. A few years later we got hit by a suv when we were getting the car fixed we had the guy remove the ding and now it looks perfect. Sadly this thing was not worth the money or effort we put into it. I also watched Fox 5 and they tested the item it didn't work for them either. I know it will cost more but take it to a auto shop and get the ding removed there. Don't buy this product it is worthless.

I sideswiped my garage door pulling out and had significant denting and ruffling over a small area (about a square foot). Because my car is older, I didn't want to have it fixed professionally, but I still wanted it to look presentable. This kit was the perfect solution. I worked on the damage little by little over an afternoon, and I'd say it looks about 90% back to normal. There is some subtle ruffling, but you have to be close and looking at it from an angle. The product was extremely easy to set up and use, and it really does behave exactly as depicted in the commercial. Also, it does not require a lot of upper body strength to turn the knob, so literally anyone can use it.

After getting some estimates , the dentless removal person told me that the location of the dent could not be assesed from the inside, therefore he cannot repair it. I also went to the dealership and a body shop... I had estimates ranging from 500 to 650 dollars. This tool after reading the instructions, was the best thing for the job. It states that you might need to re use it a few times on the same spot to pull the dent out. Today, the dent is not visible. Awesome product!

I was pulling my dad's car out of the driveway on our very narrow city street. As I turned the car left, I made a glancing blow of my front left panel on the fender of another car (which, luckily, happened to be mine!) A longish, not very deep dent, about 12 inches long and 3-5 inches wide, was the result. After getting several body shop estimates-- ranging from a high of $900 to a low of $250-- I decided to give this product a try. I figured, at worst, I would be out $15-$30, right? If the thing didn't work, I could still pay the darned auto body vultures, right? I mean, at worst, I would lose a few hours of hassle and an extra $30, right? And maybe I would save several hundred bucks, right?

Wrong.

The thing mostly didn't work, and the amount of frustration this piece of junk caused was far more damaging than the original dent.

OK, so I get the box in the mail. Contained inside is a glue gun, two solid black colored glue sticks, a metal U-shaped bracket about 5 inches long with two suction cups at each end of the "U", two pieces which looked like flat plastic suction cups with a metal screw attached, another screw cap like thingy, a plastic scraper, a stick of solid plastic about 7 inches long and 1 1/2 in diameter which looked like a giant white crayon, and a small bottle of greenish liquid. Oh yeah, and an instruction sheet which looked like it had been photocopied on a 1963 mimeograph machine. All of this was tossed haphazardly into the box.

OK, so the basic idea seemed pretty simple. You heat up glue in the glue gun, slather liquid glue onto one of the flat suction cups, attach the suction cup to your car in the center of the dent, so the screw is sticking out perpendicular to the car. Let glue dry. Then you get the U-bracket and put it over the suction cup screw, with the U upside down relative to the car and on the "flat" part of the car (over the dent, but not IN the dent.) Then you attach the screw cap to the suction cup and start screwing. The physics of thing starts pulling on the suction cup, and this is supposed to pull up the dent with it.

Sounds simple, right?

OK, so first time I do this, the front edge of the dent actually does pull back into place! Wow! I'm impressed. That only leaves about 11 inches to go. However, when the suction cup pulls off, the glue stays stuck to your car! (and occasionally on the suction cup.) You are supposed to remove the glue with the plastic scraper and the plastic pencil thingy. When that doesn't work, you are supposed to use the green liquid.

This turns out to be almost an impossibility.

I start scraping the solid black glue with the plastic scraper. The glue starts to come off sort of, but mostly it just starts to mash the glue further on down the car, so there is now a long streak of black goo down the side of the car in addition to the dent. So now the car is not only dented, but looking like crap. OK, I figure, I'll go chemical. So I open the green liquid-- which is only about 2 1/2 ounces, not much. Must be really powerful, I figure. It does STINK to high heaven, so it's GOT to be powerful, right? I pour the stuff directly on the car and start rubbing. This does seemingly NOTHING AT ALL to the glue! I am now starting to panic. I pour more onto the car and starting rubbing like a madman. Whether it is the liquid or the friction of my rubbing, the glue starts to slowly come off. It takes about 15 minuted of rubbing to get about 80% of the glue off. My wrists are sore like heck.

Since the thing did work, sort of, I decide to try again. So I pick up the glue gun. Unfortunately, now I can't get a single drop of glue out of the glue gun! Is it on? Yes. Is the glue stick in there? Yes. Why won't glue come out? Who knows!!! I start manually pushing the glue stick into the gun, and even this is not working. After pushing really hard one time, I get about four drops of glue out. I switch glue sticks. This seems to fix the problem for the moment. I get glue. I set the whole apparatus up again, only this time, when the suction cup starts pulling on the dent, it just pops right off. No effect to the dent at all!!

Or a second time.

Or a third time.

Or a fourth time.

Or a fifth time.

(And remember, after each of these times, there is glue to remove-- scrubbing and scrubbing and scrubbing, glue to coax out of the piece of crud glue gun, a mess and a disaster.)

Then I realize that part of the problem is that the bracket is only 5 inches long. This means, if your dent is wider than about 3 inches, forget it. The bracket won't span the dent. That is, it won't work. So, if you have dent one inch wide, this might work wonders. But then again, if your dent is only one inch wide, one wonders why you would bother.

After 4 1/2 hours of frustration--- oh, so much pain!!!--- I decided that $250 didn't sound so bad for the pros to do it.

I give the product two stars, because it did shrink my dent about 11%--- but also because I am such a tremendously generous guy, and because I am practically delirious from frustration and panic.

Hey, it might work for you, who knows?

But, I doubt it.

Just goes to show what good marketing and infomercials can do for you even if your product is a piece of junk.