Why You Only Hand Tighten an Oil Filter
- Thread starter kschauweker
- Start date
its really easy you spin the filter and when it stops it made contact.
then continue 3/4, 7/8 or 1 turn based on instructions on side of filter.
if I'm not sure on the base contact thing i back it off half a turn and give it abit of a spin. it stops pretty much instantly on contact.
That kind of filter carnage usually happens from filter tongs or a band in the middle.. the filter is stronger at the end so if you have to use those use it near the end.
Except for unusual vehicles I can usually put on rubber palmed gloves and turn it off by hand.
the ratchet driven nylon strap for poor location filters and I put the strap right at the end.
Screwdriver through the filter is never a good option unless its a thickwall filter can.
I'd crush the can down and use giant channel locks etc before a screwdriver.
The issue usually is that He-Man puts it on as tight as possible by hand (or wrench, can’t be having call back leaks) and they seem to get tighter in service. Same way they strip out drain plugs… Another reason for DIY!
Or, is calling out a specification, when you are compressing a 1/4" thick rubber gasket, from varying suppliers, surely of varying durometer, way overthinking something that is super simple?
I am pretty OCD, but I guess not as much as some. Half a century of oil changes, and I've never, ever, felt inclined to torque a spin-on oil filter. But hey, if you are so inclined, keep on torqueing. It will continue to give those folks like me, something to chuckle about, and reassure me that there are others that are much more OCD than me.
It will be interesting to hear more from the OP, but it has been my observation here on BITOG, that the vast majority of those that share experiences of have difficulty removing oil filters, is when someone else installed it.
Count me as another that has never had difficulty removing a filter.
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Seriously long story short I was working on an AC line blocked by the filter. I removed the filter, coupled to the AC line, hand tightened the filter. I had to run the engine to add refrigerant. I could no longer get the filter off by hand, nor by wrench because a wrench could not get to it. Not a cap wrench, not a strap wrench. Of course it was a GM SUV. So I'm not really sure if hand tightening has everything to do with everything. I was this far away from the screwdriver through the side trick, which I doubt works. What I did based on the above, I bought ACDelco PF48 filters to be used for an AC job. The stock is a PF63. My hunch is that the position of the AC port was based on a PF48 as the engine was basically in place 2007-2014, but the filter got longer in 2011.
Changing oil...how hard can it be?
I had to take the fender off an old Nissan P/Up to remove an overtightened filter.
Looked a lot the OP's.
I used a "Filter Fang" to remove it.
Great tool that fits into the holes in the filter base.
Once you've torn the can off this is the tool to have.
Still have 2. One for large one for small filters.
I had to take the fender off an old Nissan P/Up to remove an overtightened filter.
Looked a lot the OP's.
I used a "Filter Fang" to remove it.
Great tool that fits into the holes in the filter base.
Once you've torn the can off this is the tool to have.
Still have 2. One for large one for small filters.
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The only filter I've ever had difficulty removing was on that (.....) Ford Fiesta. It could have been the factory filter or the first one changed at the dealership. I simply couldn't get it off.
I eventually put a screw driver through it - which didn't work either. I won't do that again.
So I drove my trusty elderly Chevy II to an auto supply place and bought a correct size (small) expensive metal strap wrench. With the wrench I got the filter off but had to apply so much force I dented the fender in doing so. The dealer's body shop had replaced the (thin walled) fender after a minor fender bender, but had "forgotten" to undercoat it. Thoughtfully they offered to now undercoat the dented fender. Just another part of the saga of my hand's down worst car owning experience ever.
Those tighten around a filter in the loosening (ccw) direction. Only a cap wrench that fits the finger flutes works bi-directionally.
He’s got to go CCW to get that off.
He may have to resort to a hammer and chisel.
AutoMechanic
Site Donor 2024
I’ve dealt with some tight filters but never one that broke off haha. I’m for hand tight except on GM products where they have the TSB for because they vibrate loose. Those are supposed to be tightened with a cup. Once you have had to make a 50 mile trip to go scrub someone’s driveway because the filter came loose then you will definitely be tightening those in particular with a cup lol.
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How safe would you feel if your small airplane had an oil filter hand tightened? Its not like anything in aviation is important or critical.
www.lycoming.com
The filter should then be turned with a torque wrench until a torque of 18-20 foot pounds is reached. The 20-foot pound maximum torque should not be exceeded.
www.aircraftspruce.com
17 ft/lbs. of pre-set torque
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Yamaha lists the normal 13ft/lbs for their 300hp outboard.... thats like a $28k+ engine when compared to my $17k new VW Jetta:
I guess many can get away with tightening everything or anything without a torque wrench, including spark plugs, rims/wheels, drain plugs...... and why forums have issues with leaky filters, impossible to remove filters, warped/damaged wheels rims, and God only knows how many stripped spark plug threads in heads, stripped oil pan drain plug threads, along with all those leaky damaged filters.
There is attention to detail and there is hack work. I'm pretty sure the 3/4-1 turn after someone being a wizard with gasket contact is reached is pretty good. Because of 'feel, I wonder how close one's 3/4-1 turn is to anyone else's.
I was a bit surprised how 'light' 13ftlbs is on a filter. Because my cartridge filters require a Lycoming like 20ftlbs, and we've seen so many damaged cartridge filter caps over the years, I've been using the 20ftlbs on my canister filters without issue. Its too much but hasn't damaged the filter and is easy enough to remove, like the cartridge cap. I'm going to tone down to the aviation and s2000 17ftlb spec or maybe compare how much my 3600/9688 sized filter spins after 13/17/20ftlb increments to see if it makes much of a difference once snug. Carpel tunnel and rheumatoid arthritis haven't let me tighten a filter by hand in a few decades.
Tips For Changing Your Spin-On Oil Filter
Many of the aircraft engines produced today are equipped with fullflow, spin-on oil filters. For long engine life, it is necessary to change both the oil and the filter at regular intervals. The information we receive indicates that problems are sometimes encountered because proper procedures...
Tempest AA472 Oil Filter Torque Wrench | Aircraft Spruce
Tempest AA472 Oil Filter Torque Wrench The Tempest AA472 oil filter torque wrench is a great addition to any toolbox. Its 1
www.aircraftspruce.com
Page 23-24:
Yamaha lists the normal 13ft/lbs for their 300hp outboard.... thats like a $28k+ engine when compared to my $17k new VW Jetta:
I guess many can get away with tightening everything or anything without a torque wrench, including spark plugs, rims/wheels, drain plugs...... and why forums have issues with leaky filters, impossible to remove filters, warped/damaged wheels rims, and God only knows how many stripped spark plug threads in heads, stripped oil pan drain plug threads, along with all those leaky damaged filters.
There is attention to detail and there is hack work. I'm pretty sure the 3/4-1 turn after someone being a wizard with gasket contact is reached is pretty good. Because of 'feel, I wonder how close one's 3/4-1 turn is to anyone else's.
I was a bit surprised how 'light' 13ftlbs is on a filter. Because my cartridge filters require a Lycoming like 20ftlbs, and we've seen so many damaged cartridge filter caps over the years, I've been using the 20ftlbs on my canister filters without issue. Its too much but hasn't damaged the filter and is easy enough to remove, like the cartridge cap. I'm going to tone down to the aviation and s2000 17ftlb spec or maybe compare how much my 3600/9688 sized filter spins after 13/17/20ftlb increments to see if it makes much of a difference once snug. Carpel tunnel and rheumatoid arthritis haven't let me tighten a filter by hand in a few decades.
Having removed those base plates with a hammer and chisel I empathize.
Just found this:
TALON Oil Filter Tool (Up to 1500 in lbs)
FREE SHIPPING TO USA ONLY THE ULTIMATE IN OIL FILTER REMOVAL! GOT A STUCK OIL FILTER? WATCH THIS VIDEO! The TALON OIL FILTER TOOL has been reinvented and improved!! The 10M-TALON oil filter tool has undergone some changes through the years, improving as the demands of our customers became...
bogertaviation.com
To be honest most of the vehicles I have serviced in my life, I wouldn't be able to get a torque wrench in there. The contact plus turn is an easier way to go.
FWIW, with torque there are several critical applications that are a torque and turn scenario, like head bolts etc... The contact and turn seems to be very similar to this strategy. Hundreds of OC's in my life and not a leak to be had.
Just my $0.02
Spin it on until it stops spinning easily. (That’s gasket contact). Then do the 3/4 turn.
On German cars... i use a torque wrench since there is usually a spec for it.
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Hand tight + 1/4 turn with a cap wrench won't yield the op's result. Been doing it that way since high school auto shop class in 1987, never a problem. The torque they use at the Ford factory... Yeah, I could see that producing a ripped filter.
I've had lots of fun hammering in screw drivers over the years even with some filters I tightened myself. It look a long time to learn that they only needed to be lightly hand tight.
As to why they seem a lot harder to remove than install, I often wondered if the rubber seal was designed to swell in contact with oil, making them self tightening.
Thankfully it's a distant memory as it's 8 years since I've had the pleasure of undoing a canister filter. The top mounted filter housing that takes a cartridge filter is so much better and no real need to spill a drop of oil in the process.
As to why they seem a lot harder to remove than install, I often wondered if the rubber seal was designed to swell in contact with oil, making them self tightening.
Thankfully it's a distant memory as it's 8 years since I've had the pleasure of undoing a canister filter. The top mounted filter housing that takes a cartridge filter is so much better and no real need to spill a drop of oil in the process.
