The setups you've seen with a remotely mounted spin-on filter are more than likely on engines that have had the oil gallery flow modified. This process is outlined in the Stovebolt "Engine Mod" technical tips and is done when the block is totally disassembled and being rebuilt. It's not a driveway modification.
The stock can filter is plumbed into the 235 block with 1/8" rubber lines that are fed from the block. In contrast, the full-flow filtering system uses 3/8"-1/2" ID lines to handle the increased volume of oil. An unmodified cartridge system would loose excessive oil pressure if a line in excess of 1/8" were plumbed in....that's ,in addition to the 4-6 pounds already lost to push the oil through the can filter.
If you want to see a remote filter mount I have plenty of pictures in my webshots Chevy albums. This modification gives me 45psi at 55 mph at 180 degrees with 30w zppd supplimented oil. Idle oil pressure is 20 psi at normal operating temp and I would highly recommend getting your machinist to make the internal modifications with a rebuild. The machine work and block cleansing set me back $65.00.......cheap insurance!!!
Dave
