Sometimes, it’s hard to recognize just how far you’ve come when all you can see is how far you still have to go. And that’s where perspective changes everything. As a student, you see the struggles. You see the mistakes. You see the dents you couldn’t finish, the pushes you missed, and the skills you haven’t quite mastered. But I get to see something different. I get to see the learning process from 10,000 feet. After 15 years in the PDR industry, I’ve seen a lot. Different levels of quality, work ethic, personalities, learning curves, successes, failures, good habits, bad habits, and just about everything in between. I’ve seen what separates an average technician from a great one. And I’ve seen what happens when someone is willing to put in the work. That experience has given me something valuable. Perspective. And I believe I’ve earned the right to look a student in the eyes and tell them when they’re doing a good job. Not because I’m trying to make them feel better, but because I know what good progress actually looks like. Mike just wrapped up two weeks of training here at Pushmore Academy. And I know something about Mike. He doesn’t just want to be good. He wants to be GREAT. But greatness doesn’t happen in two weeks. PDR is a craft. It demands patience, discipline, dedication, repetition, and a willingness to struggle through the learning process. Today, Mike completed a dent repair that was cleaner than some of the repairs I was producing in my first few YEARS in this industry. Let that sink in. Two weeks. Now, does that mean he’s mastered PDR? Absolutely not. And @Mike Ried knows that. But here’s what I want him to understand. You cannot measure your progress solely against the technician you want to become. Sometimes, you have to trust the perspective of someone who’s already walked the road you’re traveling. Mike, take it from somebody who’s been there, who’s made the mistakes, who’s seen the best and worst this industry has to offer, and who’s had the privilege of watching other technicians develop.

I had occasions to work on hailed hoods for my wholesale account but this was my first real hailed car, and first roof It is still P2P as there was a lot going on on this case because some trees fell on it during storm But I treated roof and hail damage on rails like if it was PDR Not 100%, a few could have use a wet sand or more minutes but that's details a customer would never notice so I'm pretty happy with the results

Had to Use Glue unfortunately customer said he had put silicone around the lights. Really Wanted to get some tools behind it. It turned out great. Saw that little cart of Marketplace 20 bucks can’t beat it. Happy Saturday to all Let’s Go !

PUSHMORE ACADEMY | Visual Alignment & Precision Before you can control your tool, you must learn to control your perspective. If you’ve spent any time training with me, you’ve probably heard me say: “Get your chin with the panel!” It’s a simple instruction, but there’s a very important reason behind it. When performing paintless dent repair, we’re constantly processing visual information. We’re interpreting the reflection, identifying highs and lows, locating our tool tip, and determining where and how much intensity needs to be applied. But what happens when our eyes aren’t properly aligned with the panel? THE IMPORTANCE OF HEAD POSITION Imagine you’re working on the side of a vehicle, repairing a dent in a door. If your head is tilted, with one eye positioned closer to the panel than the other, you’re creating an imbalance in your viewing perspective. One eye is observing the reflection from a slightly different angle than the other. Now, our eyes naturally view objects from different positions. That’s part of how binocular vision works. But when we’re trying to interpret extremely subtle changes in reflected light, unnecessary head tilt and inconsistent viewing angles can complicate what we’re seeing. Think of a pair of binoculars. Both optical paths need to work together to provide a clear, useful image. If the alignment is off, interpreting what you’re looking at becomes more difficult. Our goal in PDR is to eliminate as many unnecessary visual variables as possible. WHAT DOES “CHIN WITH THE PANEL” ACTUALLY MEAN? It doesn’t necessarily mean keeping your head straight up and down. In fact, when working on a vertical door panel, you may need to turn your head sideways to establish the correct viewing position. What I want is for you to position your head so that: - Both eyes are aligned evenly across the area you’re observing. - Your line of sight allows you to interpret the reflection consistently. - Your head remains controlled rather than constantly tilting or shifting. - Your viewing position allows you to identify your tool tip and monitor the surrounding metal.