The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop 261 OEM Oil canister

I am on the hunt for information regarding the 261 oil canister for my 261. I bought the engine without an oil canister.

Is there a big filtration difference with the OEM like the one at the top in this link that seems to have the oil filter spin onto the OEM mount vs the type that you drop an oil filter into the canister?

261

Thanx in advance!

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).

With that said, do I want a larger canister like that used for the bigger 261 vs the 235 engine?

I have seen oil canisters listed as "Heavy duty"(larger in height) over the smaller 216/235 type(smaller)... or at this point would it just be what looks best in my engine bay?

I'd go with what you like best. The big ones would likely be used in severe service trucks like farm vehicles, mining trucks, desert use, heavy hauling, etc.

How many miles do you expect to put on your truck each year?

As you see, your truck never had a filter in the first place and the engine seems to have survived ok. Anything you install now is just an added bonus.