'Tool' to help prefill oil filter

[bkaiser]

I did my first oil change recently and stumbled across a way to hold the filter while I prefilled it. The plastic container from a large (16 oz. ) container of marshmallow Fluff is about the perfect size to hold the filter and catch any drips. Standing the filter in the container let me do other stuff while the filter soaked up the oil.



By the way - the recipe on the back of the container makes great fudge!

 

[Ladders]

or use

a small (i think 1lb) coffee can. That was what I used and will be using agn (hope, hope, hope) soon.



\\BF//

 

[Vaughn MacKenzie]

Vaughn's method...

I've found the quickest and easiest way to prefill my filter is to screw it on dry then crank up the engine while holding the pedal halfway down. As soon as it roars to 3500rpm I click off the key. After that I proceed to do a normal startup. I figure by that time the filter is full of oil and it's safe to drive it



Vaughn

 

[MCummings]

Re: Vaughn's method...

Originally posted by Vaughn MacKenzie

I've found the quickest and easiest way to prefill my filter is to screw it on dry then crank up the engine while holding the pedal halfway down. As soon as it roars to 3500rpm I click off the key. After that I proceed to do a normal startup. I figure by that time the filter is full of oil and it's safe to drive it



Vaughn

If you have a Fram Filter,, be sure to do it this way,,



Merrick Cummings Jr

 

[bighammer]

But where do you get Marshmallow Fluff? Chevy dealer?

 

[Prairie Dog]

Originally posted by bighammer

But where do you get Marshmallow Fluff? Chevy dealer?

:-laf :-laf :-laf

 

[willyslover]

so Vaughn. . when you get that new black '03, can I watch your first change ... . never seen a new one blow up and it would be worth the price of admission

 

[boonsur]

I have to say, the new location is one of the worst things Dodge did to this truck. I made a pretty good mess when I "caught an edge" getting it down. (Plus the oil was still a little too hot... . I really had some things to say at that moment ).



I'm thinking a piece of PVC tubing might really help guide the filters in and out. Maybe I'll market it

 

[Badunit]

I put a zip lock bag over it after I loosened it up. Unscrew the filter by hand and let it drop into the bag. Zip lock it shut when you get it out. Very little mess.

 

[Timinator]

I use only synthetic marshmallow fluff.

 

[MarkF]

Which is better? Synthetic fluff, or the regular stuff? Does fuel economy improve with synthetic fluff?

 

[Badunit]

There is an inverse correlation between fluff quality and fuel economy. Synthetic fluff is smoother and less grainy than the regular stuff. Being more palatable, synthetic fluff is consumed at a higher rate. Increased fluff consumption causes additional weight gain. Heavier drivers lead to lower fuel economy. So synthetic fluff is bad for fuel economy.

 

[DieselB59]

I personally use a gerotor from a Power Stroke engine's oil pump. It's just big enough to support the oil filter, and heavy enough not to go anywhere on its own.

 

[Duck]

I bought the 6-in-1 oil filter tool from Geno's, and it holds the filter in place pretty well while priming it.



What's the Mopar part number for the marshmallow Fluff? I heard that using synthetic marshmallow in the first 50k miles was a bad idea, but the smell of roasting marshmallow would be kind of nice.

If only Shell could add a Marshmallow scent to Rotella...



As an aside, my factory oil filter was a PITA to get off. They torqued it down WAY TOO TIGHT at the factory. Anyone else have this problem?

 

[rbattelle]

Duck,



How did you get the filter off? Did you use a strap wrench, or the "6-in-1" wrench? Did you mangle or otherwise damage the filter while trying to remove it?



It would be typical of my luck to twist the filter body right off, leaving the threaded end of the filter still torqued in place.

 

[Casey Balvert]

I darn near busted my hand trying to get the filter off with the 6 in 1 wrench. Finally resorted to the strap wrench from above. I took the turbo air tube off to give me more room. Once I broke it loose it was not a bad job.



Casey

 

[MarkF]

If you do a search in the second Gen forums you will see that the over tight oil filter from the factory is a very common problem. My guess is that they put them on dry, (no oil on the rubber gasket) there has been other speculation that the factory has a 350lb disgruntled gorrilla installing oil filters.

 

[Rosco]

On both of my '03s the filter came off no sweat. I also got the 6 in 1 wrench and it's good for filling and removing the filter.

 

[Duck]

I tried to use the 6-in-1 to get it off, but it was no use. It kept slipping out of the teeth. I used a strap wrench to finally get it off. Not much room at all in there for a strap wrench though. I was tempted to take the intake elbow off, but I was in a hurry so I struggled 1/4" at a time. A few bloody knuckles and some choice adjectives later, and I was in the clear.

Didn't mangle the filter, but it had to be close to collapsing. I've NEVER seen a filter on so tight in my life. I've mangeld smaller filters with as much pressure as I had to apply on that one.



Maybe instead of lubing the seal with oil, they used Loc-Tite?