Thanks for post 5 . I forgot to post your 9-22 post with interesting info. about the filter placed vertically. If I understand correctly because oil is in the vertical filter, no need to punch holes in the membrane ? The Kenz design pumps oil out of the side block plug while the valve cover design pumps through the front valve cover passage . Still not sure if one system is better than the other.
Put simply, with a full-flow filter that is changed regularly, there is no need to punch holes in the anti-drainback membrane, regardless of the filter's orientation. The stated purpose of punching the holes, among those who advocate it, is so that the Model A's purportedly anemic oil pump can overcome the resistance of the membrane and get oil into the filter.
I believe this practice originated in the '60s or '70s, a time at which two things were true:
- The full-flow valve cover kit had not yet been invented
- Filters used mostly nitrile ADB membranes
Nitrile membranes can, over time, become brittle and hard. When used in a
bypass filter, where the incoming pressure is always low, it's possible that some filters ended up with a hardened membrane and the oil never got into the filter.
However, a full-flow filter with a hardened membrane would simply block the entire oil volume from the pump – and as I said earlier, the Model A's positive-displacement pump is perfectly capable of putting out very high pressure if the circuit is blocked. Any functional stock pump can push through any ADB membrane, brittle or not. So there is no need to disable the membrane by perforating it. Having said that, purchasing a filter with a silicone anti-drainback membrane is good insurance at a low price.