Moderator's Note: I've edited the post below to make it less inflammatory. It does contain some excellent information - Jay
Most of you know I am in the filter business, I don't have a horse in this race, I very rarely sell auto filters and am not here. I absolutely despise it when filters are "pitched" with the"well that sure sounds right to me" BS to laymen.. They are a disgrace and insult to the filter industry.
Pressure does not open nor hold open said relief valves - Pressure Differential does! Pressure Differential, Delta Pressure or ΔP as it's called comes from flow you can have 150psi in a slow flowing oil system and that pressure relief is not going anywhere. Bypass Valves open to protect the engines oil pump drive system, prevent collapse/rupture of the filter media and also to insure oil flow when the filter's media can not flow enough oil. Sure if you are forcing thick oil or to much oil through the filter the relief opens - it does that by design.
Oil and debris in the pan are sucked up by the pump with only a strainer screen to protect the pumps internals Then it is pumped through the filter.
As to " the cartridges are easily disassembled so you can check it easily for any metallics in the filter media." , you still have a pleat pack that needs to be opened/spread out to search for debris/metal particles and those cartridges are a real bitch to open cleanly. In regard to "It's narrower but taller." I presume your referring to the cartridge inside but again I'd like to know how many square inches of media that cartridge opens up to, however off hand I'd say sq. inches of media close to what's in a typical spin-on - that small OD large ID hurts.
The "classic" BS in filter sales: " It filters down to 8 micron" = which by the way is the exact same filtration performance of a chain link fence if you find an 8 micron particle somewhere on it. The "Down To", "As Small As" and etc are examples of the Hogwash phrases that I hate and are frequently "pitched" at laymen.
"8 micron seems to be the consensus for minimum filtration for wear particles." ....by who?? ... please tell me. I've have industrial customers that read their particle counts in their lube oil and hydraulic systems routinely as part of their jobs, that 8 micron is new to me and I can tell you to them also....
On the issue with a vertical oil filter anti-drainback missing that essentially makes the filter, the captured debris on the filters media and the oil inside the hoses, passages etc. free to flow backwards and also aids in requiring oil to be pumped back to refill the drained out areas on start-up. Why in hell did all the designers of those engines spec anti-drainback?....
Seriously the cartridge pictured is what is referred to in industry as an AN or Mil Spec filter they come in a wide variety of lengths, medias ranging from cellulose/paper, woven wire to microglass, they are available in many properly rated micron ratings that are determined by testing according to procedures developed by the societies that use them. I'm betting the media in the pictured filter element shown is cellulose....
My advice install a modern spin-on racing filter and filter mounting head. If you want finer filtration then the racing filter offers - dig through the Mobil1 oil filters and find the one that fits the racing head - I will say since most auto supply houses sells all Mobil 1s at the same price you are getting a 4-star bargain on the large size spin-ons. Or install a pair of everyday FL-1 sized filters in parallel.
BTW take a look at how lube/hyd/fuel Ind filters are really specified
http://www.purolator-facet.com/Portals/19/Documents/8300.pdfhttp://www.purolator-facet.com/Markets/Industrial-Hydraulics/Elementshttp://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-ALUMINUM-BILLET-OIL-FILTER-MOUNT-NASCAR-NHRA-MODIFIED-LATE-MODEL-/261357857463?pt=Race_Car_Parts&hash=item3cda246ab7&vxp=mtr
