Stupid oil filter question I know, but.....

No wonder you're living in south west Missouri if you used to live in New Zooland, dude. Btw, are there many sheep in Missouri? Lol

 

As I understand it Caterpillar don't want you to put oil in the filters, so I just install mine, 2 full flow filters on a 3408, and wind the engine over until I get some oil pressure. With an air start, that's a few starter tank refills from the shop air compressor.

 

Dry oil filters? Dry starts is where most all your ware happens. Remember they are the ones selling replacement parts!

 

I wind the engine over on the starter until it shows oil pressure...not a dry start. According to the CAT w/shop manual that's what they recommend. CAT is only covering it's ### in case you manage to get some dirt in the oil.
Anyway, my engine's done unbelievable hours and whenever I do a bearing roll there's no sign of dry starts.

 

That's OK for air starters that you can crank with the key off. With electric starts, they often set a low oil pressure critical event if you don't put a little oil in the filter. Then if anything happens, Cat likes to deny warranty for a low oil pressure event logged.

I personally have never seen engine damage from a dry filter installation, but I put a little in. The way it was explained to me, if the element is dry, blasting oil through it could tear the filter media. Kind of like spraying a hose at a rag. A dry rag gets blown out of your hands, but if it's already wet, it's easier to hang onto because the water flows through it easier.

 

My engine is basically an earthmoving engine and they only made a limited number for highway truck use, so I guess CAT thinks you might get dirt in the filters in field conditions.
Besides, I buy my oil in 44 gal drums and pump it with a pneumatic drum pump so I wouldn't really want to pump that straight into a filter, but each to their own I guess.
Mine's got 2 filters so that would mean extra work as well.

 

I top my new filter up with oil and lube the seal. They hold about a gallon. I get the filter as tight as humanly possible by hand then put my filter wrench on it and tighten probably an inch further. I know CAT says to tighten a full turn but that seems excessive to me. I've never had a filter leak or come off prematurely. Not really necessary to tighten the #### out of an oil filter a full turn with a wrench like that. Reminds of guys doing set up on a milling machine getting a big mallet and beating the #### out of the vice handle. Don't have to do that...

 

I was taught the same thing as Grape about dry media except maybe collapses it also and have also seen companies do dry starts with no apparent problems. However they were also rotating trucks at about 5-600,000 miles. If your in for the long haul would it possibly catch up? I can understand not wanting to run unfiltered through the engine. Deere has some filters that come with a screw on plastic adaptor so it is filled only from the outer holes. I pore oil in the filters the same way, outside holes. Pump to a gallon jug and pore it in the filter and fire it up. Not really extra time and save the starter. Sounds like coal and I are about the same. Put one on today, but it was brand X and its hieroglyphics appear to be contact +1. I marked it and did my usual deal and ended up with about 60% of an extra turn.

 

Yeah, it makes sense pouring oil through the outer holes, definitely not the big inner hole because then it would be unfiltered. As a matter of fact I used to do that on the 8V92 I used to own. But like I said, the main and big end bearings don't show signs of dry starts and the piston/liner kits last their usual hours and the valve gear looks like new.
The air start won't overheat like an electric starter so I'm happy with what I've been doing all along.

 

"Contact +1" is not much tighter than hand tight and makes perfect sense. If that's what they mean.

I always thought hand tight plus 1 full turn was really crazy. That rubber seal can be squeezed out of there by excessively tightening it. That's also part of the reason they say to lube it.

I guess this will make people cringe but I have never filtered fuel or oil into the new filters. Just pour it in and top it off straight from the fuel can or oil jug. Yep I pour the oil right into the center hole it fills up faster that way. Never had any issues.