The reality is that there is no appreciable difference in the amount of oil filtered by the two types of filters.

Figures I've seen show that the canister type with the replaceable paper element filters about 87% of the oil whereas the spin-on type filters 92% of the oil under the same conditions/engine hrs.

For pampered vehicles like ours that aren't pushed to the limit and whose oil is changed frequently (3 mos, 3000 mi), you are not going to notice any difference in your lifetime.

The real key to extending engine life is frequent oil changes. There are plenty of antique vehicles with 100,000+ miles still driving around that have never had an oil filter installed on their engines.

Engine oil is contaminated more from blow-by gases and condensation than anything likely to get caught in a filter (unless your engine is shedding metal pieces).

1950 Chevrolet 3100 (Ol' Roy)

1939 Packard Standard Eight Coupe (The Phantom) | 1956 Cadillac Coupe de Ville (The Bismarck) | 1964 Ford Galaxie 500 coupe |1966 Ford Mustang (Little Red) | 1969 Pontiac GTO (The Dishpit) I 1979 Ford F-100 | 1976 Ford F-150 (Big Red) | 1995 Ford F-150 (Newt)