Refining used oil?

[oldestof11]

Ok, my grandpa has been in the car world until he retired a few years back. So I pick his brain for stories. Now he told a interesting one.

While he was working in SD at a shop, a guy came in and asked for their used oil. When asked why he said " To run in my car." They laughed at him but gave him the oil. They went outside and watched as he poured the oil into his crankcase after letting out the oil already in their. They weren't allowed to see the oil that came out. Anyways, they were laugh and joking on how he cease the engine cause they gave him the worst oil in the place. So they went back to work as the guy just sat there. A couple of hours later the guy came back in and requested a oil pan. My grandpa saw BRAND NEW oil come out of the pan. The guy popped the hood and showed them a special manifold that he said he customized. It had lines running in and out. He also had 3 or 4 big rig oil filters under the hood. The guy explained how he could use used oil and run it through the exchanger and filter and purify it.



So, how would this work? I am interested in doing this. This happend in sometime between the late 40's to early 60's. My grandpa said that one of the big three or oil producers bought his patent and car and destroyed them. Does used oil refining work the same way as oil refining?

Thanks for the input!

Jon

[PToombs]

I wouldn't do it. Oil now has lots of additives, when they are used up, they're gone. Thats why you change the oil in the first place.
I wouldn't want to call BS on your Grandpa, but some times stories get a little changed by time and memory!
Or it could have been a scam that guy was running. I think that is more likely the case. I have seen oil that has been sitting for years, and it's still black. Filtering it won't change the color.

[oldestof11]

Read my post over at DTR, I kinda got my feet stepped on.

Jon

[ontos]

Back in the dark ages you could buy "rerefined" oil right off the shelf.
NY Central railroad used it in locomotives. I had a relative who would "borrow" it from the railroad. No wonder cars didn't last.

I doubt any of it was refined by a manifold, but....