Thanks Tunnie it was the seal between the body of the filter and the engine block I wondered about Is there a flat seal there.
There`s a flattened rubber seal (approx. 5 or 6 mm. wide) twixt the cartridge-casing and the block; rather like a spin-on filters rubber gasket, except the cartridge seal in bonded in the groove, it`s that seal that gives some people trouble if the lid is stubborn and the casing turns (relative to the block) when trying to unscrew the lid.
This happened to me and I had a serious oil leak as I couldn`t get at the casing securing nut.....I later decided to fit a GM
conversion nipple (double-ended threaded tube) in the block which makes fitting of a spin-on filter possible (then I chucked the cartridge casing away).....the cartridge/casing shouldn`t give problems if the lid has been tightened to the correct torque and no-more.
The spin on conversion is worthwhile, as the spin-on`s are (generally) cheaper and a little more convenient.
Spin-on filter conversion 'how-to':
http://www.omegaowners.com/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1204142232