Must not get sucked in..... must not post..... aw screw it.
Why don't you guys take your ******* contest to a new thread or PM's. Nobody here wants to hear it! This thread has turned into a disaster and all I was trying to do was let guys know their is a kit available... ... ... ...
Aaron, judging from your post count and join date you are relatively new to the TDR. You’ll find threads discussing oil or filters tend to get, um, rowdy. My guess is it is because there is no real practical way for the average joe to judge the products’ performance so people basically have to put their faith in a particular brand or particular products. Spin on a filter and if it doesn’t leak it works, right? No real way the owner can tell by the seat of their pants if brand A is better than brand B. People like to believe they are using the best and then get irrationally defensive whenever their faith in their favorite product is questioned.
Anyhow, there is lots to learn in the bickering, the problem is separating the good stuff from the not so good stuff. Then there is the difficulty of effectively communicating to others what is so clear in our heads in a few short paragraphs. Anyhow, specs are useful for comparison and for
predicting performance in the real world, but the fact is the real world
IS different than the test stand and there is no guarantee that, based on specs alone, one filter will out perform another under real world operating conditions. And how/where the filter is installed can degrade its performance too! As is shown here:
#ad
It is also wise to keep in perspective what the spec differences really mean. What may look like a huge difference in the specs may really be a minuscule difference in the real world. I could go on for pages. For those interested in learning more here are some links to some articles.
How Flow and Vibration Affect Filter Performance - Inside and Outside the Laboratory
http://www.afssociety.org/spring2008/proceedings/PapersAndPresentations/1-5-1-Verdegan-d.pdf
http://www.donaldson-filters.com/068736.pdf
Ok back on topic. That Cat kit looks pretty good. As for location, I like it. Yes filtration theory recommends starting with the coarsest filter and then going finer and finer, but there are practical considerations to look at. If the 2 mic filter can handle doing the whole job of removing particulate, lasts a good long time and can reduce how often the OEM element gets replaced, then what is the downside in having it before the OEM filter? Or, to look at it another way, will the fuel reaching the CP3 be any less filtered either way? And if not how much different will it be and, more importantly, what are the real world effects of that difference? No one can answer that without doing extensive real world testing.
Now for more fear mongering. I believe it was sag2 who said to consider working on the fuel system like it was brain surgery and to be as clean as possible. Remember we are talking about tiny particulate that is everywhere, even dust floating in the air! It is impossible to remove the banjo fitting on the CP3, crack the fuel system open, cut lines, screw metal fittings together, etc and not cause small particles to get in. So how many people are willing to run several gallons of fuel through the newly installed filter and fuel lines in order to flush out any debris before making the final connection at the CP3? When a new spin on filter is installed how many people are willing to disconnect the fuel line and run several gallons through the filter to purge it of air and any crap left behind on the clean side of the filter during the manufacturing process?
Imo having the 2 mic filter before the stock filter (as this Cat kit does) is preferred since the stock filter will act as a sentinel filter to catch debris caused by the installation of the new filter assembly. It will also help protect against any debris flushed out of new spin on filters when they are installed. In the unlikely event the 2 mic filter gets clogged too quickly then a coarser filter/water separator can be installed just before the 2 mic filter.
A few years and 80K miles ago I caught the fear from the boards and bought a fleetguard 2 mic spin on (don’t care what its actual rating is). It is still sitting unused on the shelf. Because of the government rules forcing biodiesel blends of unknown percentages at every pump it is time to install the filter. (note the discussion of bioblends toward the end of the 068736.pdf article linked to above) The filter will be installed in between the tank and the stock fuel filter. YMMV
PS Wingate, please do post a link or get a P/N to that severe duty kit if you can.