I am considering going with one of these filters but...

I read about how these SS oil filters filter down to 35 microns, and how SS oil filters are used in industrial and aviation applications because of their superior filtering abilities.

I've never read about these filters that are being used in these industries, and at what level they actually filter oil down to. Maybe I'm wrong but, I'd assume they would filter down to a finer micron level. It's one thing for a motorcycle to grind itself to death and leave you stranded on the side of the road, but totally something different as far as aviation is concerned. You know, that sudden stop when you'd hit the ground...

Is it even 'fair' to compare what is available for motorcycle use to what is currently being used in industrial and aviation applications? Is it really an apples to apples comparison or marketing hype.

 

well if you like to feel warm and fuzzy green, then go for it.
but!!!
they are not white on rice nor a duck on a june bug!!!
i used them offshore and from a longevity issue, you are left wanting. if you install one, then i suggest you do more service on the oil. also, make dang sure it has a by-pass or diff'l pressure setup cuz when the plug you will receive no warning and the more wear the engine, the more you have to clean them.
most serious engines have particle detectors, aka, aircraft but most media is a go/no-go type meaning if it gets water or restriction it basically shuts down with a warning to prevent damage from circulating contaminates, yours will not. the best approach was to run the screens WITH centrifuge. the big drive offshore was cost especially with filters running 70 bucks a pop with 14 to a pot and then the hazmat issue of disposal.
personally i will not use them, a good media filter does way more (note i said good). i do run on vehicles a by-pass system that will filter a nat's *** out of the oil (note not flow through) and run them till the body craps, no engine failures, it is a frantz system.if i had my rathers, it would be a spinner model 60 centrifuge.

 

I have a K&P SS filter; well worth the money. Made in the USA and top quality. K&P will actually reply to emails about their product and help you however they can...so along with the filter, you actually get real customer service...

http://kandpengineering.com/applicat...ng/road-bikes/

People never cease to amaze me...they 'll plop down $40k on the bike then say a $140 (superior quality) oil filter is a waste of money...what?

Paper filters are a crap-shoot...you never know what is inside that can..Youtube video, guy cuts open a new filter...giant hole in the paper...had someone installed that, they would have had no filtering of the oil.

I'm a change often guy...guys here going 10,000 miles between primary changes...YIKES!..no way...why?...it takes less than quart and 20 minutes to change out..nuts...5000 miles in the engine...nope..not my bike.

K&P has an absolute of 35 micron and will catch down to 5 micron...that's about as good as it gets for a spin on primary filter.

Harley's 5 micron filter has an absolute of 40 micron...pretty good filter...but tight filters fill with dirt fast...so at ~$14 a pop just 10 changes and you're at the cost of the K&P....and most of us should be changing our oil at 3k or less...5k is only under "ideal" conditions...aka "laboratory conditions".

So, the filter cost break-even in ~30k miles...but you also get superior filtration for those miles and you can clean the filter as often as your obsessive compulsive heart desires...

Primer on oil filters: http://kandpengineering.com/primer-on-filtration/

PS> I investigated long and hard before buying my K&P...BEWARE...there are Chinese knock-offs out there that look great...but...are junk. I contacted several brands to inquire where they are made...they reluctantly admitted to "off-shore" manufacturing...aka China...I spoke with a K&P engineer...long story short...those cheap Chinese SS filters tested out worse than the cheapest, cheap paper filters...summary of research...buy a K&P or K&N SS filter; both USA Made and Premium quality.

 

3k on oil????
then norm for a diesel is 500hrs interval, so how many miles is that?
offshore, oil is not changed except by analysis and can easily run well over a year on 24/7 environment. as was said, screens with centrifuge.
engines with screens only showed excessive wear compared with factory filters.
most good filters are no longer paper, the waukesha filters are wood shavings.
the thing about a filter is there is a maze which is more efficient than frontal flow. i had a engine that required cleaning the screen 3 times a week, better have low oil pressure warning or diff'l pressure warning. the screen is nice on a NEW engine but as wear factors in, less impressive.

 

Don't be worried about the 35 micron rating firehawk6. Thats an "absolute" rating and those 5 micron paper filter ratings are in "nominal" terms, which are non-standardized total bullshit and are thus so useless, they cannot even be used as a practical comparison between different brands of "nominally" rated filters. Your 5 micron paper filter will allow 100 micron particles to pass all day long and still carry the rating. The brand of permanent filter I purchased is rated at 22 microns absolute and "1" micron nominal. I'm pretty sure they added this nominal rating, in tongue in cheek fashion, just to show how you can claim your filter is rated at darn near anything you want, so long as its a nominal rating.

 

Two important factors with oil:

1. Dirt in the oil which is the #1 culprit in engine wear.
2. The oil "wears out" (loss of viscosity, additives fail, etc.)

For most of us, the level of dirt in the oil reaches unacceptable levels long before the oil "wears out". My Harley manual says "5000 miles under ideal conditions"...none of us ride under Harley's definition of "ideal conditions"...and if not "ideal", then Harley says "change more often"...for me, that's 2500 (hot/city) to 4000 (cool/highway) miles max.

I don't throw the oil away, I run it through a home made 1 micron absolute filter system and then use it in an old car and power equipment.

I read plenty of oil analysis reports and well before 5000 miles the oil is losing it's viscosity (thinning out) and is full of large dirt particles. If I gave you, for free, black oil with 3000 miles of usage, would you run it in your bike for another 2000 miles or so?

Two bikes:
> The first one gets' fresh oil every 2500 miles.
> The second gets the used oil from the first bike every 2500 miles.

Which bike will have less engine wear?

PS: Semi ran an Amsoil fine filtering system, went something like 2 million miles with extended drain intervals, engine ran like a champ.

 

Here you go:


Put any label you want on em and say they're nominally rated at whatever you want. The secret to making a great paper filter lies in the paste.

 

you get what you pay for, nothing new under the sun!?!
there are engines that have a couple of hundred thousand hours on them without the drain plug pulled. they only change with bad samples. the key is temperature, engine condition and fuel burn. look at ocean going ships, i think shell had one that exceeded 250,000 hours. of coarse, besides being cleaned, these engines use enough oil so that the make up system keeps the oil viable.
for ex: our 6 cyl mep has a normal usage of 1>3 gal per cyl per day so that is 6>18 gallons.
for one, i never use automotive oil, period!!! since the 60s all i use is series 3 diesel oil in everything, never experience an engine failure and i run them till the bodies crap out so i looking at 200,000+ miles. here is the kicker= i never pulled the drain plug, changed the factory spin on at 10k and my frantz element every 2k. the frantz used to have a faa cert till particle detectors came out which nulled them since they operated so well that it would filter the particle out so the detector could not tell if an issue was forthcoming. they also make a good hand warmer and fire starter.
i do not knock screens but one has to know the whole story. if you are a maintenance nut, more power to you since that is what is needed, but then again, if you change your oil often, is a filter even needed, my 1974 xlch has 175+k and still kicking.

 

Good grief - I've been riding for over 50 years and never knew I had to worry about oil filters! Bikes didn't have them at all way back and the stock ones today are just fine for my three V-twins and me.

 

As you state it, its a non-issue; I agree. The question most often raised though, is do people need to worry about switching to "permanents" ? Many, including Dealers,,, especially Dealers, caution against permanents citing their (paper) filter's ratings (5 microns generally). Guys and Gals facing this sort of bullshit should at least know its bullshit. Thats the point really. Its all about informed choices.