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My 46 Packard has a bypass oil filter system with the canister type filter. Do you replace this at every oil change like new cars are they good for a longer duration?

I would say longer. The 46-7 Packard owners manual specified an oil change at 1000-2000 miles and called for the filter cartridge to be changed every 8000-10000 miles. That worked out to roughly every 5th oil change. Since we probably don't drive the cars as much to make the oil change routine using the 1000-2000 mile criteria but go more by time and as inexpensive as the filters are, you could do it more often -- maybe every other or even every third.

One thing you might do every change is to clean the mesh in the filler cap. That was Packards recommendation and since the engines rely on air flow thru the cap for proper crankcase ventilation anything that accumulates on the mesh between changes could restrict flow. Lack of proper crankcase ventilation was one of the contributing factors to sticking valves which was a persistent problem with the 356 engine and a lesser issue on the others.

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Strange that the 56 SM indicates oil filter every 4K miles.

Why not clean the canister and replace the element every time the oil is changed? Seems like a good way to preserve the engine. I have always changed the filter with the oil. Oil and filters are cheap.

JWL

Like JW wrote, might as well change it with each oil change. If you don't want to spend the cash on a new filter, it would still be good to open the filter canister and suck as much old oil out of the filter housing and drain your old filter before putting it back. You want to get as much old dirty oil out of the engine before putting in the new clean oil.

I change oil late in the fall when putting the car away for winter. I clean out the canister, change the filter, clean and oil the mesh and grease the car. It's cheap insurance and doesn't take much time. I change anti-freeze every other year and like the Peak product. I also wax the wire wheels after a good cleaning. Since I've been running radials I no longer feel the need to set the car up on jackstands. I put tomato paste cans over the tailpipes and put rodent deterrent under the seats. Small price to pay to keep the car in good shape.