Oil filter canister: Bolt torque?

[Mart]

Does anyone know if there is a recommended bolt torque for the oil filter canister?

I did mine up to 20 ft lbs and it seems to be holding well. Does that sound reasonable? Should I be tighter or not as tight?
Enquiring minds need to know.

Mart.

[Lawson Cox]

Set your torque wrench on the "sorta snug" setting. That should do it. Ford mechanics didn't use torque wrenches.

[ford38v8]

Mart, I know you've been wrenching long enough to have developed an internally calibrated wrist on your wrenching arm. Just trust in your own judgement over that you may find on any mechanical device.

[Mart]

I hear ya, Fellas.

That's always been good enough for me up to now.

But I would like a torque figure if one exists. I am making seals and intend to sell some (UK only) I want to be able to state a torque figure.

[ford38v8]

Mart, about the seals themselves, the washer under the bolt must be considerably harder than the soft one on the canister, as it will need to withstand the full brunt force that is required to seal the canister seal... But you already knew that.

[19Fordy]

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An intake manifold bolt is 25 ft.lb. I bet that would be a good 'snug" setting.
You could try various settings and see the lowest one that works best.

[tubman]

There are table of torque by thread size and pitch. What size is it? I seem to think it's 3/8 NF. If that's it, just look up the specification for that size. It'll get you in the ball park.

[Zeke3]

Those torque tables are for bolting solid shaped things together and getting the proper amount of stretch in the fastener. When you have coned shaped sheet metal parts, like the cover of the oil filter, I think the torque values in a table may be a little too high for the application.

[ford38v8]

You’d be torquing on a cork gasket of some variable density all over the place. You can’t put a number on that from a bolt torque table.

[Bored&Stroked]

Trying to extrapolate bolt stretch/torque settings to something like an oil-cannister with a gasket of some sort - makes no sense in the least.

You can't compare how you'd torque down a cylinder head, to how you'd torque a fitting in an oil-filter or other device - totally different applications of a 7/16 20 bolt/thread.

I usually tighten a head stud until my left nut pops . . . that is about right. LOL!

B&S

[tubman]

According to one chart I found on the internet, a 3/8 NF grade 2 bolt should be torqued to 17 FT/LBS. Sounds reasonable to me.

https://www.boltdepot.com/fastener-i...ed-Torque.aspx

[my4dv8]

I like the left nut principal, (@Bored&Stroked) I will use that in future. I feel Mart as extra clever as he is could be over thinking things. Perhaps Mart it’s beer o’clock. If it doesn’t leak ,that’s spot on torque.

Originally Posted by Bored&Stroked

Trying to extrapolate bolt stretch/torque settings to something like an oil-cannister with a gasket of some sort - makes no sense in the least.

You can't compare how you'd torque down a cylinder head, to how you'd torque a fitting in an oil-filter or other device - totally different applications of a 7/16 20 bolt/thread.

I usually tighten a head stud until my left nut pops . . . that is about right. LOL!

B&S

[Mart]

Thanks for all the discussion fellas. Well, unless someone can come up with some old literature from Ford or a filter supplier, then we will have to assume there isn't a recommended torque.

I might try loosening and retightening to 15 ft lbs and see how that goes.

[macdonge]

After leaking a fair bit of oil on initial startup I researched this and came up with 14 lbft. Can’t remember the source but haven’t had a drop pass the cover since!


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[tubman]

It seems we have a consensus : mid teens.

[Mart]

Just for the sake of getting data on the subject, I removed the lid to inspect the new seal. It looked ok. I turned the lid 90 degrees and refitted it. This time I only went to 10 ft lbs. I did this to simulate a seal being used a second time. It sealed fine. This motor generates high oil pressure, so is a good test for the unit. Not sure I'd recommend 10 ft lbs. My filter is clearly visible and I am checking it often.

Like tubman says, mid teens is beginning to sound like a reasonable value.

[19Fordy]

I hereby rescind my 25 ft. lb. suggestion based on the logic and experience presented above. Instead, I'll stick with "snug" as it's too easy to "smush" the gasket and create a leak.