and then put the pan on. None stuck to the pan. I read that the clearance is less than .25". The pan wasn't dented badly at all.. and like I said I have a perfectly good one to compare it with.. and they look the same.
Modeling clay is kinda what I was thinking, but I didn't have any on hand. I should have taken a picture of the original dent, it was rather small now that I think about it. I'm not worried anymore. Thanks for the info.