Anyone have any experience with this?

Clean Your Oil Don't Change It!

Toilet Paper Oil Filter?

Sees a bit too good to be true and... TOILET PAPER? Really?

 

Yes really, and they work as advertised.

The filter element on a regular oil filter is a single thick sheet of corrigated filter paper. The oil goes through in one pass.

On the toilet paper filter, the oil is forced through the entire roll - from one end to another so the amount of filtration material the oil passes through is about 300 times more than a conventional filter.

Conventional filters also have a bypass mechanism so when they get dirty, it simply stops filtering the oil and bypasses it on - not good.

I have a Frantz on my truck and it works VERY well - oil is spotless. I have had one on every older car or truck I have had since the 70s including my 55 F-100 and my 67 GTO (400 Cu/in).

The last one I bought cost $200 new!!!!!! They show up on e-bay about once a year and usually sell for about $45-$60, or at your larger car parts swap meets, someone usually has one for about $25-$30.

Here's a pic of mine installed in front of the radiator - next to the oil cooler. This was installed with the rebuilt FE 390PI engine in my 51. I can't endorse this product highly enough.

 

Well Frantz is manufacturing again apparently. I'll have to get a set up myself!

Thanks for the recommend Julie

 

Any problem with the new TP being about 1/2" narrower than it was a few years ago.

 

I'm not sure if they are or not. I had to call them to find a distributor in San Diego (there are two), and this guy was older than dirt - had been selling them since the 50s! The instruction sheet and hand written reciept were made of Papirus and translated from Egyptian I think!

Nope. I use the El Cheep from COSTCO that comes in the 24 pack of 1000 sheet roles. It just crams up in the canister and works almost exactly the same as the remote flathead filter. The oil flows up the center in a metal cone inside the roll, then is oil pressure pushed through the roll and out the bottom where is it collected and back to the engine.

A word of advice. I would use the filter outside of the normal oil pressure flow. I put a "T" on my oil pressure gauge fitting so the oil goes to the filter from there (while it is also sent up to the engine) then after it is cleaned by the Frantz, it goes back to a fitting on the oil pan and into the pan.

It filters so much of it and gets it so clean, my oil with 4000 miles on it is still honey colored and clean.

Another nice feature of the cleaner is that when you remove the old roll to install a new one, you can see on the top of the roll what has been filtered out of the oil. It is VERY clear to see any metal chips (for break in or if you engine is going to go), water, carbon, etc. It really lets you see what's happening in the engine.

One last thing is if you have re engined and are short of space around the stock oil filter, you can mount this thing where ever it is convenient for you to get to. On my 390 it was impossible to get to the filter as the PO had it installed (yes it's the orange thing behind the exhaust pipe):

 

Hey Julie, Now you have me curious. Any chance of posting up some pictures of your oil during it's next change. I'm having a hard time imagining the "honey colored" part. Thanks!

 

Back in the 50's when I was a kid, my dad used tolet paper as an oil filter all the time. It was cheep and it fit the OEM canister perfectly. After they started coming out with spin on filters, JC Whitney would sell conversions to continue using tolet paper. Sort of brings back old memories.

 

I'll go out right now and take a picture of the dipstick for you I have about 4500 miles on my oil.

Standby:

Edit note. Here ya go:

 

I've never understood the attraction of going cheap on such a critical part of the engine. Then again, the "Franz Select" TP is $3/roll, which isn't cheap, you can buy a Fram for that. (not that I recommend Fram either) I can see how these got their niche in the '50's when many cars still didn't have any oil filter, but nowadays? C'mon

 

Well if you think about the fact that the oil is being forced through a filter medium 6 inches thick instead of 1/8 inch thick, there's alot more filter area to trap contaminents - 48 times as much. And there isn't a thing that gets through this filter - except oil - not even water.

While I did considered the move because of the unsat OEM location of the spin on filter, I bought this type/brand of filter specifically because it works very well - significantly better than a conventional spin on filter - which because of the bypass may not filter your oil at all!

I've had one of these on one of my vehicles since 1975 and I've seen the oil, done the compression tests, seen the miles on the engines, and the proof for me is absolute.

Expense of the unit or the price of a roll of paper were never a consideration.

 

I think with the cost of the unit and replacement TP, I would say the cost is a wash over the live of the vehicle. The picture of Julie's dipstick after 4500 miles speaks for itself.

 

It goes just a step farther though. Really the only cost question is if you have the money to reengine every 150K or would prefere to not do it at all. I don't see the attraction as being economical at all. I see the attraction being efficiency, ease of maintainability, and filter availability. All together, you can walk from your bathroom to the garage and change youoil filter cleanly in 10 minutes without getting down on the ground and using any tools. When something is that easy, you tend to do it when you are supposed to.

It's up to you, I guess. The OP asked a question about the validity of the advertising claim by the manufacturer. I have direct experience with the product and I offered those facts and my opinion of it based on the facts - that I have seen. There's lots of opinions, but I would venture to say you probably won't get a descenting vote from anyone who has actually had one of these and actually knows the facts based on that actual experience.

 

The OE spin-on filter is a full flow design. Is this contraption a bypass-type filter or full flow? If it's bypass only, I wouldn't have one on my lawnmower. I want to see every drop of oil filtered directly before it hits the bearings.

 

I am a little bit confused! Does a spin on filter bypass when dirty,plugged or both? With at least 48 times more filtration do the big chunks get caught in the first couple sheets and the little chunks in the last couple of sheets or vice a versa? And if money gets tight can you put in just half a roll?

 

Me neither, but I don't have a lawnmower motor in my truck. (do lawn mowers even have oil filters?)

You can install it either way as a matter of fact.

Have you ever had one of these? Have you ever done any research on them? Seen any lab test reports - UL or the like? Got any facts at all on them to support your opinion?

I have. And it's pretty interesting.

Even as a bypass filter, the oil in my oil pan that is getting pumped into my bearings is cleaner (and dryer) than what your full flow design is putting through to your bearings - even when the bypass valve in your full flow isn't letting the oil pass without filtering it at all - which is about 10-15% of the time. That's alot. Dirty pan oil being sent straight to your bearings Joe - 10-15% of the time.

Matter of personal preference. You guys can do whatever you want to.