Fix it or leave well enough alone

[TurdFerguson]

So I dorked my new truck. Got some PDR. Trying to decide if I should leave it as is or go the body shop route and get skim/paint/blend. Opinions welcome.

$650 for the paint. already in $200 for PDR.

 

[Ramjack]

I voted to leave it, but I guess it depends on what it would cost to skim/pain/blend.

 

[TurdFerguson]

$650 for the paint. already in $200 for PDR.

 

[troutspinner]

I don’t know about you but me, after the truck is a year or so old, the obsession is over and things don’t tend to bother me as much.

 

[TurdFerguson]

I don’t know about you but me, after the truck is a year or so old, the obsession is over and things don’t tend to bother me as much.

Only one payment made.. Maybe that is why it hurts so bad.

 

[Ramjack]

$650 for the paint. already in $200 for PDR.

Understood, but I'd wait a year and see how many dents/scratches you have and which ones, if any, you want to fix then.

 

[troutspinner]

Only one payment made.. Maybe that is why it hurts so bad.

I feel your pain for sure. I made a post after the first week I had mine where some landscapers decided to level ground with a trimmer sending stones all the way down the passenger side of my truck. I think I had 200 miles on it at the time. Fortunately the landscaper companies insurance got involved and it afforded me to get it fixed, ceramic coated and a couple bucks to spare.

 

[Grayfuji]

ouch really sux. 99% sure if it was me I would wait....

 

[VaderRebel]

I had a ding/dent on my tailgate of my 16' Rebel, almost exact same spot and it didn't scratch through to metal so I left it. Backed into a tree branch that was in a blind spot.

I voted to leave it.

 

[Jus Cruisin]

There would be zero hesitation for me. It'd already be over at the bodyshop.

 

[TurdFerguson]

Funny how this is running 50/50... I can see many kindred spirits out there.

 

[TurdFerguson]

I feel your pain for sure. I made a post after the first week I had mine where some landscapers decided to level ground with a trimmer sending stones all the way down the passenger side of my truck. I think I had 200 miles on it at the time. Fortunately the landscaper companies insurance got involved and it afforded me to get it fixed, ceramic coated and a couple bucks to spare.

This might be the wisest response so far.

 

[TurdFerguson]

There would be zero hesitation for me. It'd already be over at the bodyshop.

Given your sig. 650 isnt a big deal. I don't know that I could afford insurance on your fleet... Want to adopt me Admiral?

 

[OgRedd]

There would be zero hesitation for me. It'd already be over at the bodyshop.

^ What he said.

 

[Goatmann]

i had a spot on my old '92 XJ similar to your crease, took it to the local fix-a dent. fixed the dent for $50, you could not tell that it had ever been damaged.

 

[Jus Cruisin]

Given your sig. 650 isnt a big deal. I don't know that I could afford insurance on your fleet... Want to adopt me Admiral?

Ha ha..... Just got lucky and made a couple of good guesses when I came to a forks in the road of life over the years. Now I don't think there's much more road left for me..... At 68 most is now in the rearview mirror.

 

[Bdhays63]

Looks like the PDR guy did a really good job. I would be nervous about paint. Is he gonna paint the whole panel or do a spot job and try to blend it? Blending metallic paint can be a nightmare and possibly make the whole thing way more noticeable. Painting the whole bedside might not match the rest of the truck especially with metallic flake. Even factory metallic can have a leopard print effect and that’s painted by a robot. If it were mine I’d leave it alone. But if I had to paint it I would definitely make sure the guy doing it was super experienced and knows what he’s doing. Good luck.

 

[TurdFerguson]

Looks like the PDR guy did a really good job. I would be nervous about paint. Is he gonna paint the whole panel or do a spot job and try to blend it? Blending metallic paint can be a nightmare and possibly make the whole thing way more noticeable. Painting the whole bedside might not match the rest of the truck especially with metallic flake. Even factory metallic can have a leopard print effect and that’s painted by a robot. If it were mine I’d leave it alone. But if I had to paint it I would definitely make sure the guy doing it was super experienced and knows what he’s doing. Good luck.

PDR guy put a line of clear where the crack in the paint developed so the paint is sealed. I am leaning toward leaving it the way it is. You are one of many people who have told me that metallic is hard to blend/feather and that I would likely end up with most of the truck being painted. Also a 2nd layer of paint reduces my chances of having successful PDR done again on the painted panels. Also PDR guy wasn't going to paint. I had a separate body shop who was going to skim and paint.

 

[TurdFerguson]

Worst case I made some stitches to cover the crack/seam

 

[Dusty1948]

...You are one of many people who have told me that metallic is hard to blend/feather and that I would likely end up with most of the truck being painted.

Just about any paint with metallic in it is difficult to match exactly, which is why a lot of vehicles will have entire sides painted when there is only one panel damaged. Most automotive painting methods have the vehicle electrically polarized so that the metallic are drawn down into the paint layer to improve uniformity. That is almost impossible to replicate in the field, especially by the average collision shop.

Until my most recent truck purchase, I've avoided metallic finishes for this very reason. It finally paid off on my last Ram that was solid black. After a stone pelting you could not tell the difference in any kind of light or light angle, except for a decrease in orange peel.

Regards,
Dusty

2019 Ram 1500 Laramie Quad Cab 2WD, 5.7 Hemi, 8HP75, 3.21 axle, factory dual exhaust, 18” wheels. Now at: 004418 miles.