Oil Filters — Part Deux.

Where are we at?
OK, so I've changed the oil twice since doing the original oil and filter change when I first got the bike. For those that remember, the filter fitted had no manufacturer's markings on it and, when I cut it up, found it to be absolute crap. 

I fitted a genuine Honda one, and since then just dropped the oil a couple of times to try and get everything running clean inside again. Today I put another flush in the engine and changed it all again. And this, my very bored friends, is how it went down.

2011 CBR600RR
Really like this bike, the paint, the shape, its agility... it's awesome. But someone decided it was a good idea to hide the oil filler cap behind that black fairing panel. Doesn't make sense that to top up the engine oil, or check the filler cap for tightness (as they do before you enter the racetrack), you have to remove part of the fairing.

Although the screws are easily accessible, the panel has to be taken out and refitted in a particular way or bits get bent/scratched/chipped. For a service item, that's plain stupid.

Moans over, panel's off. This bike is still sexy underneath it all. So with 350ml of engine flush added to a warm engine, it's run for a further ten minutes. 

I needed an indication of how much metal content would be in the oil. Always expect to see gold flecks in the oil drainer when you tip the oil away. If you see anything bigger than a couple of millimetres, or house brick, it could spell trouble. 
I cleaned out the draining pan first so I had a better idea of the debris floating in the oil.

Excuse the hopeless video. As you can see the oil is still really clean, and all this is probably overkill, but engines cost lots of money when they go tits up so it's best to keep the insides as nice as possible.

How the oil filter... well, filters.
Off with its head! Ye olde exhaust pipe cutter does a great job of seeing what gremlins lurk within.

That seal is the non return valve, it sits nicely against the top of the filter that I've just cut off. This one is perfect and has been assembled correctly. The one in the filter I first took off this bike wasn't. 

The eight smaller holes are where the oil is pumped into the filter from the oil pump.

With seal fitted, you can now see how the oil is prevented from running back to the sump and emptying the filter. This is better for the engine because there is always a certain amount of oil ready to be pumped initially. If it returned to the sump each time there would be a delay in oil supply and engine wear would increase.

The perforated tube stops the paper element from deforming under high pressure. Oil is forced through the element from the outside, filtered and pumped through the threaded section of the filter and through your engine.

Pressure relief valve in the bottom of the canister. If the element gets blocked and oil can't get through, the relief valve opens up and allows oil to flow from the pump and into the engine. Unfiltered oil yes, but any oil is better than no oil.

 No metal visible in here, happy with that. 

That is how your oil filter works. Stick with a quality item, it's worth way more than its own weight in gold.

Once the oil was tipped away, it was just tiny specks of metal left in the drain pan. You'll always get this and I'm pretty happy there's nothing amiss inside the little CBR motor.