[i82much]

By pass filtration has it's place on all I/C engines, high performance or daily driver, gas or diesel. Clean oil is never going to hurt any engine, dirty oil will definitely hurt any engine. Even oil companies will tell you, oil doesn't wear out, it gets dirty and contaminated by inefficient filter systems.

what about fuel contamination?

[dataway]

Quick newbie question ...

There is a functioning bypass valve IN the basic Pontiac aluminum right angle filter adapter that bolts to the block? I've never looked at one that close .... so it's probably not a good idea to glass bead one of those adapters? Can it be disassembled and cleaned?

[steve25]

Yes,it's cake to take it apart and wash it out!

For years I have run with the bypass blocked and then ran a remote duel filter mount with 2 quart filters hanging off it.
The flow rate even if you ran gear lube in the motor at -20 degree temps is huge!

[Sirrotica]

An article about the inefficiency of full flow systems and advantages of a by pass filter system in actually keeping the engine oil clean and extending the oil life up to 8 times that of a conventional full flow system, while cutting down engine wear by removing finer contaminants. They also talk about the restriction to vital engine parts with a full flow filter system and need of a bypass valve to keep internal parts lubricated.

The article also speaks about GM's own study done along with the SAE, that proves that there are much better filtering systems available than the factory engineered full flow system in reducing wear and extending oil life. Taken also from Machinery Lubrication:

Is your engine’s oil filter performing to your expectation? Do you even know the performance of your filter? Most people don’t, and if they did, they would be appalled.

Some of the best full-flow engine filters on the market perform at a capture efficiency of 50 percent at a particle size of 10 microns and above. That’s a beta ratio of 2 for those of you keeping score, and these are considered “good” in terms of full-flow engine filtration. In comparison, a beta ratio of 1,000 would be considered “good” in terms of industrial hydraulic filtration. Why is there such a performance difference? The following factors contribute to the variance:
Physical Size

Often limited by physical size, engine oil filters are relatively small when compared to their industrial counterparts. This small size coincides with less filter media surface area through which to pass the lubricant.
65% of lubrication professionals use bypass filtration systems at their plant, based on a recent poll at machinerylubrication.com
Pressure Differential

The pressure differential is the change in pressure from the inlet to the outlet side of the filter. If the pressure differential is too high, a valve will open, allowing the oil to bypass the filter. All engine oil filters or heads are equipped with a bypass valve. This valve is needed so the engine does not become starved of oil as the filter clogs with debris.
The Beta Ratio Test

Oil filters can be tested in a variety of ways, but one of the most common methods is the beta ratio test. This test incorporates online particle counters positioned upstream and downstream of the filter, a continuous flow of test contaminant into the main system reservoir and oil flowing through the filter.

The beta ratio is calculated by dividing the number of particles larger than a certain size upstream of the filter by the number of particles of the same size downstream of the filter. For example, you may have a beta ratio or a beta sub 5 (meaning particles larger than 5 microns) equal to 10. This means 10 particles upstream of the filter would be divided by 1 downstream of the filter. In other words, for every 10 particles coming in, one gets through.

If you have a higher beta ratio, say a beta ratio of 100 or a beta sub 5 equal to 100, for every 100 particles coming into the filter larger than 5 microns, one makes its way through.

Every filter will have multiple beta ratios. There could be a beta ratio for 2 microns, 5 microns, 10 microns, 50 microns, 100 microns, etc.

You can also use the beta ratio to calculate capture efficiency, which is the average performance over the filter’s life, with the following formula:
((Beta – 1)/Beta) x 100

As an example, a beta ratio of 10 would yield a capture efficiency of 90 percent:
((10 – 1) / 10) x 100 = 90 percent

Therefore, 90 percent of the particles larger than 5 microns are removed by a filter that has a beta ratio of 10.
Flow Rate

In most engine designs, oil must flow through the filter before entering the engine components. Therefore, the filter must be able to handle 100 percent of the flow rate needed to feed the moving components of the engine.
Media Pore Size

The media pore size is the major determinant in how efficient and how small of a particle the filter can remove.

When these factors are combined, a problem arises. The physical size is usually constrained by design. The filter can’t be too large because of all the other components that we are trying to fit under the hood. The flow rate must be high enough to feed all the lubricated components. This means you can’t make the pore size too small or it will raise the pressure differential and the bypass valve will open, effectively rendering the filter useless.

There are a few things you can do to remedy this problem. Enter bypass filtration. Bypass filtration systems take 5 to 10 percent of the flow that would have gone to feed the engine and cycle it through an ultra-efficient filter and back to the sump.

With bypass filtration, the flow rate can be greatly reduced, allowing for a much smaller pore size while retaining a normal pressure differential. The result is much cleaner oil being returned to the sump. Smaller soot suspension and polar insolubles that are not controlled by the full-flow filter can now be taken out of the system. When combined with a full-flow filter, bypass filtration offers the benefits of lower wear generation rates, lower oil consumption, higher combustion efficiency and longer oil life.

In a case study performed by General Motors and published by the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE), it was determined that engine service life could be extended eight times when 5-micron filtration is implemented vs. the standard 40-micron filtration.

Obviously, having cleaner oil is better for the reliability of the engine. There’s an old saying that oil doesn’t wear out; it just gets dirty. Although there is some validity to the idea that dirtier oil will “age” quicker than clean oil, the engine oil will have a finite life. It will need to be changed eventually no matter how clean you keep it.

While it’s true that a system can remove the majority of suspended soot, wear debris and dirt, the oil and additives are still being decomposed by oxidation and nitration. The depletion of these additives will ultimately be the reason for the oil change. The system should slow down the rate of this depletion, but it cannot eliminate it. Acids, fuel and coolant are just a few of the contaminants that bypass filtration cannot address. They too can shorten the life of the oil.

If you are shopping for one of these systems, it is vital that you do your homework. Not all bypass systems are created equal, and there is a plethora of marketing material out there to make you feel thoroughly confused. Keep in mind that while testimonials may seem impressive, they are not scientific proof. Make sure the manufacturer has SAE and ISO testing to back up its claims.

When installed and maintained properly, a bypass system can provide great benefits. Just be sure to ask all the right questions and have a firm grasp on the concept before settling on a system.

[Sirrotica]

Originally Posted by i82much

what about fuel contamination?

NO FILTER can remove fuel once it is introduced into the oil. If you have fuel in the oil then it has to be changed, no ifs and or buts. If you have more than a minute amount of fuel in the oil you have a mechanical problem that needs addressed and repaired.

[wheneaglesfly]

Something to keep in mind is that the majority of Dirt is introduced into engines by the Air Getting drawn in past the air cleaner or no air cleaner used.

[wheneaglesfly]

It also comes down to what an individual can afford or wants to spend.
Use what Pontiac Engineering gave You.
Full Dry Sumped is best.
$5,000 -$8,000 spent is typical .
11-15 quart total oil system capacity.

[tom s]

I just dont understand how so many pontiac engines in the 60-70s and 80s went 100K miles with the original system and the crappy old oils we ran back then?Tom

[i82much]

Originally Posted by Sirrotica

NO FILTER can remove fuel once it is introduced into the oil. If you have fuel in the oil then it has to be changed, no ifs and or buts. If you have more than a minute amount of fuel in the oil you have a mechanical problem that needs addressed and repaired.

Yeah I just don't think an old car running a carburetor should be going past 3000 miles regardless of what kind of filter you run.

[Sirrotica]

Originally Posted by i82much

Yeah I just don't think an old car running a carburetor should be going past 3000 miles regardless of what kind of filter you run.

Your free to think whatever you'd like, the truth is if the carb is setup properly there will be little to no fuel getting into the crankcase. As I said fuel in the crankcase oil is because of a mechanical problem, not what type of induction system you have on an engine.

Washing the oil film off of the cylinder walls will lose the ring seal and lead to fuel in the oil. Having a flooding carb, a defective mechanical fuel pump (ruptured diaphragm) are mechanical problems, not induction problems.

The by pass filtration system is quite old and was used since the 50s on carbureted cars long before fuel injection was common on production cars. It was used to extend oil changes and offer superior filtration extending engine life, over 60 years ago. By pass filtration is far from new and was used on Detroit iron when oil filter systems were optional. If you specified an oil filter on your car it was a by pass system, not full flow.

Filtering oil inline on the pressure side of an oiling system is far from the ideal way of keeping oil analytically clean. If you bothered to read the article from Machinery Lubrication it lists all the reasons why a full flow system is marginally better than no filter at all, and the benefits of a by pass filtration system are head and shoulders over any system Detroit hung on the engines in the fifties and since. Really if the car companies used a more expensive by pass filtration system, the engines would have probably close to doubled before becoming worn out. Can't sell a man a new car when he already has a great running engine in his old car, if the rest of the car is still serviceable.

Can anyone explain to me why even with written proof there is so much resistance to use something many times better than Detroit engineers designed? If it were new cylinder aluminum heads that we were discussing over cast iron original parts, no one would be arguing that the iron heads are superior.

Damn, GM even did a study and it has the same results, what more is needed to prove that the full flow system is hardly filtering any of the harmful particulate from the oil? They say in their own study that oil properly filtered is safe to run up to 8 times longer than a full flow system.

Tom S, with better oil filtration the old Pontiacs would probably have reguarly run over 200,000 miles. I had a 76 Safari 455 that made over 160,000 on the original engine before the body got so bad it was junked. Not sure how many more miles the engine had in it, but it still ran good and was quiet when it was scrapped.

[Sirrotica]

Originally Posted by wheneaglesfly

It also comes down to what an individual can afford or wants to spend.
Use what Pontiac Engineering gave You.
Full Dry Sumped is best.
$5,000 -$8,000 spent is typical .
11-15 quart total oil system capacity.

A by pass filtering system isn't even 10% of your lowest figure. The truth is it will actually pay for itself in a short time. In 2011 I installed one on my 93 K3500 turbo diesel when I changed oil. The next time I changed oil was in 2015, 4 years and a hair over 25,000 miles. At that time I did the calculations and the system had completely paid for itself in oil and filter changes. I recovered the complete cost in 4 years. Best part is I own it, and if I decide to buy something else I can transfer it to the new vehicle is a couple hours and sell the truck with the original full flow system. My truck now has 253,000 miles on it and runs as well as any other 6.5 diesel I've seen. Oil pressure hot going down the road is about 45 lbs.

[TedRamAirII]

Originally Posted by dataway

Quick newbie question ...

There is a functioning bypass valve IN the basic Pontiac aluminum right angle filter adapter that bolts to the block? I've never looked at one that close .... so it's probably not a good idea to glass bead one of those adapters? Can it be disassembled and cleaned?

Easy to disassemble and clean. I think there is 1 screw holding the spring/valve in. I have not looked inside one in years.

[wheneaglesfly]

Originally Posted by Sirrotica

A by pass filtering system isn't even 10% of your lowest figure. The truth is it will actually pay for itself in a short time. In 2011 I installed one on my 93 K3500 turbo diesel when I changed oil. The next time I changed oil was in 2015, 4 years and a hair over 25,000 miles. At that time I did the calculations and the system had completely paid for itself in oil and filter changes. I recovered the complete cost in 4 years. Best part is I own it, and if I decide to buy something else I can transfer it to the new vehicle is a couple hours and sell the truck with the original full flow system. My truck now has 253,000 miles on it and runs as well as any other 6.5 diesel I've seen. Oil pressure hot going down the road is about 45 lbs.

No offense but I do not know who you are yet.
We have never chatted prior.

Do You have something better than what GM used & Guaranteed to flow 18- 30 gallons per minute at 80 psi- 150psi Hot oil pressures ?
Really I not concerned with 1 micron filtration.
Depends what article you read.
Some say 40 microns is Ok.
Others 20 microns.

Real World racing & street use I like.

Anytime you run external oil lines its a future chance area of hoses & fittings blowing out.
Dont ever say it does not happen because it does.
Why only Premium High end Forged AN Race fittings & Teflon lined Stainless steel braided hoses should be used.

[i82much]

Originally Posted by Sirrotica

Your free to think whatever you'd like, the truth is if the carb is setup properly there will be little to no fuel getting into the crankcase. As I said fuel in the crankcase oil is because of a mechanical problem, not what type of induction system you have on an engine.

Nah. Even a perfectly tuned carburetor is going to get a little fuel into the engine at times. There is a reason TBI engines tend to last a lot longer than the old carbureted versions of the same engines, and the reason sure as heck ain't oil filters.

[Sirrotica]

Originally Posted by wheneaglesfly

No offense but I do not know who you are yet.
We have never chatted prior.

Do You have something better than what GM used & Guaranteed to flow 18- 30 gallons per minute at 80 psi- 150psi Hot oil pressures ?
Really I not concerned with 1 micron filtration.
Depends what article you read.
Some say 40 microns is Ok.
Others 20 microns.

Real World racing & street use I like.

Anytime you run external oil lines its a future chance area of hoses & fittings blowing out.
Dont ever say it does not happen because it does.
Why only Premium High end Forged AN Race fittings & Teflon lined Stainless steel braided hoses should be used.

And I don't know who you are either.

The filter system that Detroit designed is flawed, GM says in their study that a by pass filter system is better than their full flow system, the people that designed the system admit there are better alternatives. How does knowing who I am change that?

I don't believe you know how a by pass system works, so I will post a simple diagram so you can see the filtering is completely independent of the oiling system fulfilling the needs of the internally oiled engine parts.



It takes about 5% of the oil from the oil pressure port and runs it through a 1 micron filter at the rate of about 1 quart per minute and simply returns it to the oil pan extremely clean. It does not restrict the vital oil supply to the internal engine parts. At this point the full flow filter becomes redundant and can be eliminated or kept in place. I made reference to running an Oberg filter so there is virtually no restriction between the pump and the internally lubed engine parts, or the stock setup could still be retained if an individual chooses to.

The by pass filter system does just what it says, bypasses the full flow filter. It does a job that no full flow filter or series of filters are able to do. The line is only 1/4" inch ID capable of 200+ # working pressure at 250 degrees. There is no need for big diameter hoses and high pressure fittings as this system isn't supplying the internally lubed engine parts, it's doing one job, filtering oil to a new if not better than new condition and returning it to the pan cleaned.

One other thing is this is the street section so the OP isn't running a full out race engine, it is conceivably a street engine he's asking about. Would I run a by pass filter on a race only engine? The answer is yes I would, especially my favorite form of motorsports, dirt track racing. Years ago when VW buggies were running the off road races like Baja, they used Frantz filters because the VW only had a screen in the pan to act as a filter, did little to keep the oil clean in the harsh dirty environment and made the VW engines much more dependable during long races. So yes these types of filters have been run in race only applications with excellent results.

If the oil is kept in a pristine condition and has no abrasives in it you simply change the filter element and leave the oil in the engine. One quart of makeup oil is added when the filter element is changed replenishing the additives. Clean oil doesn't exhaust oil additives nearly as quickly as oil charged with 0-40 micron particulate left in by full flow oil filters. There is no down side to running a by pass filtration system, the same can not be said of a full flow system, even GM admits it.

Any oil analysis company will tell you the more fine particulate that is removed the less wear in any lubricated machine, be it a hydraulic system or an engine.

This from BLACKSTONE LABS in Fort Wayne IN, probably one of the largest and best known oil analysis labs has to say about by pass filtration:

We receive many oil samples from clients who don't understand what is required to run unusually long oil use intervals in their engines. The accumulation of wear metals, blow-by materials, and oil oxidation products in their oils is alarming. It has been our experience that one cannot simply add oil of a particular brand or base stock and expect it will be useful for an extended period of time, lubricating, cleaning, and cooling as required. Oil that becomes contaminated needs to be changed promptly. In our opinion, there are no magic oils or additives.

There are, however, auxiliary systems you can add to your engine's lubricating system that will keep the oil clean enough to use over an extended period of time. By-pass filtration units are the most common system used for this purpose.

In-line oil filtration, which comes installed on your engine from the factory, filters oil entering the engine down to roughly 30-40 microns (millionths of a meter). This is about as finely as in-line filtration can filter, because when the oil is cold or the filter is partially plugged, a finer filter would cause too great a pressure drop, forcing open the filter by-pass valve and allowing unfiltered oil to circulate through the engine.

By-pass filtration works differently. When this type of auxiliary system is installed, some of the sump oil by-passes the in-line filter system, passing continually though a by-pass filter and then returning to the oil sump. Using this method, sump oil is constantly being cleaned any time the engine is running, and it can be filtered down to a very fine size. All you have to do to maintain the system is occasionally change the by-pass filter.

Not only do the by-pass filtration units cleanse the sump oil of blow-by and oxidation products, they also reduce wear metals and silicon accumulations, both of which are abrasive. Oil does not wear out. Its usefulness is limited by contamination. By-pass filtration removes most of the contaminants.

How long can an oil fill be run using by-pass filtration? We've heard claims of large (Class 8) diesels going 1,000,000 miles on the same fill of oil with no harm done to the engines. We have analyzed oils which have been in service 240,000 miles and found nothing unusual in the analysis, other than higher than average iron and lead (from steel parts and bearings), and these wear accumulations were not intolerably high.

After having run many tens of thousands of diesel engine oil samples, it is our opinion that a by-pass oil filtration system is one of the most important factors in extending oil drains. If you are interested in extended oil drains, we suggest you investigate adding this type of system to your engine.

I use these filters on everything I drive and my only regret is I didn't start using them years ago. Again your oil can never be too clean, but we all know what dirty oil or oil starvation will do to your high dollar engine, or any engine, even if it's your daily driver.

[Sirrotica]

Originally Posted by i82much

Nah. Even a perfectly tuned carburetor is going to get a little fuel into the engine at times. There is a reason TBI engines tend to last a lot longer than the old carbureted versions of the same engines, and the reason sure as heck ain't oil filters.

In the auto service world as a mechanic for over 45 years I will disagree with your assessment. If I do a carb it won't be dumping any gas into the crankcase, now there are many people that have tools and think they can setup a carb, but it requires a few tools that the average wrench doesn't even own and having knowledge of how a carb works to set it up properly. It's pretty simple to set one up so it dumps fuel when it shouldn't, lots more work to do it the correct way though.

Even fuel that does get in the crankcase, if it's not excessive will boil off when the oil turns hot and either be lost through the breathers or PCV system. Fuel will vaporize long before the oil reaches operating temperature so it will be purged anyway, unless it's excessive due to a stuck float or faulty fuel pump, faulty mechanic, etc.

You keep the full flow filter and keep changing your oil when it's dirty so the guys with waste oil heaters have plenty of fuel next winter.........

[TedRamAirII]

Originally Posted by i82much

Nah. Even a perfectly tuned carburetor is going to get a little fuel into the engine at times. There is a reason TBI engines tend to last a lot longer than the old carbureted versions of the same engines, and the reason sure as heck ain't oil filters.

I was told by a Engineer that after GM went to FI, all the cylinder wear issues they had stopped. Nothing like a richer than necessary mixture washing oil off the walls.

[wheneaglesfly]

Originally Posted by Sirrotica

And I don't know who you are either.

The filter system that Detroit designed is flawed, GM says in their study that a by pass filter system is better than their full flow system, the people that designed the system admit there are better alternatives. How does knowing who I am change that?

I don't believe you know how a by pass system works, so I will post a simple diagram so you can see the filtering is completely independent of the oiling system fulfilling the needs of the internally oiled engine parts.



It takes about 5% of the oil from the oil pressure port and runs it through a 1 micron filter at the rate of about 1 quart per minute and simply returns it to the oil pan extremely clean. It does not restrict the vital oil supply to the internal engine parts. At this point the full flow filter becomes redundant and can be eliminated or kept in place. I made reference to running an Oberg filter so there is virtually no restriction between the pump and the internally lubed engine parts, or the stock setup could still be retained if an individual chooses to.

The by pass filter system does just what it says, bypasses the full flow filter. It does a job that no full flow filter or series of filters are able to do. The line is only 1/4" inch ID capable of 200+ # working pressure at 250 degrees. There is no need for big diameter hoses and high pressure fittings as this system isn't supplying the internally lubed engine parts, it's doing one job, filtering oil to a new if not better than new condition and returning it to the pan cleaned.

One other thing is this is the street section so the OP isn't running a full out race engine, it is conceivably a street engine he's asking about. Would I run a by pass filter on a race only engine? The answer is yes I would, especially my favorite form of motorsports, dirt track racing. Years ago when VW buggies were running the off road races like Baja, they used Frantz filters because the VW only had a screen in the pan to act as a filter, did little to keep the oil clean in the harsh dirty environment and made the VW engines much more dependable during long races. So yes these types of filters have been run in race only applications with excellent results.

If the oil is kept in a pristine condition and has no abrasives in it you simply change the filter element and leave the oil in the engine. One quart of makeup oil is added when the filter element is changed replenishing the additives. Clean oil doesn't exhaust oil additives nearly as quickly as oil charged with 0-40 micron particulate left in by full flow oil filters. There is no down side to running a by pass filtration system, the same can not be said of a full flow system, even GM admits it.

Any oil analysis company will tell you the more fine particulate that is removed the less wear in any lubricated machine, be it a hydraulic system or an engine.

This from BLACKSTONE LABS in Fort Wayne IN, probably one of the largest and best known oil analysis labs has to say about by pass filtration:



I use these filters on everything I drive and my only regret is I didn't start using them years ago. Again your oil can never be too clean, but we all know what dirty oil or oil starvation will do to your high dollar engine, or any engine, even if it's your daily driver.

I am an ASE Master Mechanic Like You.
And also a Diesel Mechanic.
46 now.
I like dirt track racing too.
I was involved from 2006-2011.
Head mechanic for 2 cars- drivers local.
1/4 mile high banked clay dirt oval.
Top dogs run 700 -900 HP turning 9,000 RPMs.

The bypass system your talking about was used on Allis Chamlers tractors WD & WD45 series.
Not a bad thing.
Just unusual.

It could work.
Just have never seen it used on the Auto side at all.

I have a 1960-61 Pontiac Tempest 4 cylinder factory Oil filter adapter block off plate.
Like the one Bruce Fupler shows on his website & covering this topic.'
Exact as he used Super Stock Drag Racing in the past. No oil filter. T/4 Cast iron bypass plate bolted on.
I am planning on trying it on one my Pontiac engines.
Perform tests.
With the Factory Right angle oil filter adapter and unmodified.
Another with 3/8" Allen pipe thread plug in.
Then the T/4 cast iron bypass plate.
It was a hard bypass plate to locate but I have it.

[i82much]

Originally Posted by TedRamAirII

I was told by a Engineer that after GM went to FI, all the cylinder wear issues they had stopped. Nothing like a richer than necessary mixture washing oil off the walls.

I just don't see too many enthusiasts wearing out their engines from using the factory filtration system.

[TedRamAirII]

Originally Posted by i82much

I just don't see too many enthusiasts wearing out their engines from using the factory filtration system.

Yep. Std bore blocks are a dime a dozen. ; )