[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

I can save you some money my2nd40 and tell you that we don't own a stud gun and in almost 15 years of professional restoration on all the cars we have done, I have yet to see a need for us to own/use one. Allow me to explain...

A dent is nothing more than metal that has been stretched due to trauma. The correct way to repair the dent is to reverse the stretch in the same basic order in which the trauma was inflicted. Using a stud gun to attach a nail-sized stud to the metal and then jerked does not shrink the stretched metal but instead just restretches the metal in a concentrated area and thus only re-arranges the shape of the metal. To correctly repair a dent, the metal needs to be shrunk. Study the options and become proficient at one and you will likely find just a few small hand tools are all that is needed.

Now if you still feel the need to spot-weld a nail, consider taking a couple of small flatwashers and touch the edge to a grinder to create a flatspot. Now, this washer can be tack-welded to a panel. Next use a pair of Vise-Grip locking pliers to apply some pressure as you use a slapper or dolly to raise the dent.

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