Every great tool starts with a story, and KaddyKat™ is no different. The heart of our story isn’t a fancy lab or a corporate office—it’s a working PDR shop in Manheim, Pennsylvania.
At Dent-Techs, founder and inventor Sean Laukhuff spent years wrestling with the same frustrating, risky reality most PDR and auto body techs still face today: removing and reinstalling doors is awkward, dangerous, and almost always a two‑ or three‑person job. Different vehicle heights, panel thicknesses, hinge styles, and door geometries made every job feel like starting from scratch. Doors sagged, twisted, or lurched the second a bolt came free. Techs were forced to “muscle it,” gamble with panels, or tie up multiple people just to keep one door from crashing to the floor.
Instead of accepting that as “just the way it is,” Sean and his team turned their own shop into a live testing ground. Week after week, vehicle after vehicle, they chased one question:
How do we make door removal and reinstall as controlled, safe, and repeatable as any other pro-grade process in the shop?
That one question gave life to KaddyKat™.
From idea to invention: building the KaddyKat™ system
The first versions of KaddyKat™ were rough—pool noodles, metal, and a lot of imagination. But each prototype pushed the idea further: could a stand actually use the door’s own weight to stabilize itself instead of fighting against it?
That’s when our breakthrough happened.
KaddyKat™ is built around our patent‑pending HAWLASS™ (Height‑Adjustable, Weight‑Load Actuated Stability System), the industry’s first scissor-jack compression stability system designed specifically for paintless dent repair and auto body work. Instead of straps or guesswork, HAWLASS™ uses the weight of the door itself to compress and lock the load in place. As the door settles onto the stand, the system automatically adjusts height and center of gravity, then self‑stabilizes under load.
But to bring an industry-changing idea like this to life, Sean needed assistance. Enter fabricator and co‑owner Bob Beck of 717 Metal Fabrication and industrial designer Galen Kane of GKane Design, LLC. Together, the three refined what is now known as the Scissorjack Component Compression Stand (SCCS), the stand at the core of KaddyKat™.
The final result is more than just “a door removal device.” It’s a system that:
- Grips and stabilizes as soon as the door’s weight lands—no extra hands required.
- Allows technicians the ability to fine‑tune height so body lines, hinges, and edges line up exactly where they need them.
- Turns door handling from a sketchy balancing act into a smooth, single‑tech workflow.
- It also acts as a stable stand for hoods, Cargo doors (small to large), trunks, hatches, and sliding doors.
From the first mockups to the production units built in Lancaster, PA, KaddyKat™ has been shaped by real shops, real problems, and real feedback, not theory.
The KaddyQ™: controlling the chaos when panels pile up
Once KaddyKat™ started solving the door removal problem, another challenge became obvious: what about everything after the door comes off?
Shops often have multiple doors or panels off vehicles at once. They lean them against walls, balance them on makeshift stands, or constantly shuffle them around the bay. It’s inefficient, it’s risky, and it eats into production time.
That’s where the KaddyQ™ comes in.
If KaddyKat™ is the muscle and precision for removal and reinstallation, KaddyQ™ is the workflow optimizer. It’s a lighter, streamlined system inspired by the same stability principles as KaddyKat™, but without the elevation feature. Think of it as a “queue manager” for off‑vehicle panels, built to:
- Securely stage multiple doors or panels off the vehicle
- Protect customer parts from accidental damage
- Keep your bay organized so techs can stay focused on repairs, not juggling hardware
Together, KaddyKat™ and KaddyQ™ form the foundation of a true hood‑door‑panel system for modern PDR and auto body shops.
What’s next: a future built with the community
KaddyKat™ isn’t just a finished product—it’s a platform that keeps evolving.
Right now, the team is expanding the system so KaddyKat™ becomes the go‑to stand for hoods, deck lids, hatches, and sliding doors. At the same time, they’re building a private KaddyKat™ owner community where PDR and auto body pros can share setups, feedback, and ideas directly with the people designing the tools.
Crowdfunding, trade show demos, and a growing library of real‑shop video content are all part of the same mission: give working techs a smarter, safer, single‑tech way to handle doors and panels—and keep improving it with every unit that hits the floor.
KaddyKat™ started as one tech’s frustration and a rough prototype on a workbench. Today, it’s a patent‑pending, trademarked system built in the USA, trusted by professionals, and designed to push the industry forward.
And we’re just getting started.
Every door that lands on a KaddyKat™ or KaddyQ™ doesn’t just make your day easier—it helps shape the next generation of tools for shops like yours.
