IH 460 Compared to SM

I can pick up a really nice 460 gas for a great price to replace my SM gas on the haybine. I am thinking I will like the IPTO and wide front over the current SM. The horsepower is pretty close to the same, 460 rated a bit higher. Anything I am missing?

I am not a fan of 460's but for your use it would be a good move. I do like 560's

It would have to be a good 460, a row crop too, before i would chance it,any chance you dyno it before you buy it to see what it's really got, and to see if the clutches in the pto arn't going to slip !!

For operating comforts the 460 is better,especially if you get the deluxe seat. Will pull a 9 foot haybine just fine not using too much gas. Maybe a little better on gas than the SM. Larger gas tank. Better hydraulics pto and so forth. 460 if you had to pull it will not keep up to the SM if it has been enhanced. Dad had a 400,460 and a 560. Put the picker on the 400 even though it did not have power steering. I asked why and he said the 460 was not enough tractor for the picker, lighter rear end even than the SM.The 460 is still on the home farm but the others were traded in on larger tractors that were Diesel.

Well for whatever reason,460s seem to be one of the most hated IH tractors ever, but in your case vs a super M on a haybine I am sure you will love it, the power steering will be much better and the hydraulics as well, for a 9' sickle haybine it should have plenty of weight and power...

I used to run a IH 1190 9' with my 300 utility and it handled it great, I wouldn't think twice about putting it back on if something happened to the 560

460 is a short stroke, high revving (by comparison) 6 cylinder. It will not lug like your Super M. In real field work, a Super M will run circles around a 460.

Running a haybine is hardly a taxing job for either tractor. The PTO and TA will be beneficial to your operation.

grandpa had a 47 M and a 450 the 450 was traded on a 460 diesel because the M could do as much work as the 450 but on less fuel. grandpa liked that 460 so much he bought a 560 diesel the next fall. if the 460 and 560 were such bad tractors they would have been gone a long time ago

My SM has been enhanced by the local IH dealer back in the 70s and hasn't been worked hard much since then, it is powerful for what it is. It does also have Behlen PS added. So main thing I will be getting is the live PTO and wide front so not as much driving over the cut hay as with the NF. I was curious if for some reason the 6 in the 460 was ill suited for the job or too thirsty, and I think the comments are leaning towards it not being an issue, Thanks!

My haybine is a 990 IH 9 footer, the SM does handle it just fine. I was in a pinch 2 years ago and even ran it with a slightly tired SH which made it work pretty hard in heavy grass , but it did get the job done.

I know I hear a lot of people bashing 460's. All I can tell you is my neighbors had one when I was a kid (still do). That was there "Big Tractor" Through the seventies before they got a 856 in the late seventies/early eighties. It had flat top fenders and I spent a lot of hours riding on them. They milked about fifty cows at that time.
That 460 did all the plowing and disking, haybine and square baler work then chopped corn with a Fox single row chopper in the fall. Then usually got Manure spreader duty in the winter.
Only problem that entire time was pto clutches. Since all the bigger diesels are on the farm now the engine was finally rebuilt. I will say I pulled the head and there were a few valves with chips missing.
May not be the best red tractor out there but that one was pretty tuff.

Local seed corn company picked with 460's under 2M-H and 2M-HD mounted pickers. Had 3 of them, picked Thousands of acres every fall before they switched to Uni-Harvesters.

The 2-3/4" diameter axles like M, SM, 400, 450, 560, 656 thru 686 had was an option on the 460, and 350. Required when putting a mounted picker on them. The rear axles on our '51 M bowed slightly with our 2M-E mounted picker even before we put the drive gearbox and wagon elevator. Imagine what the 2-1/2" axles would do!

you cant go wrong with a 460 on a haybine? live pto better steering, easier handling and comfort. better go for it.

A 460 on a 9-ft hyaline is about as good as it gets. Smooth, quiet, a dream to handle. While a 460 is not a powerhouse, it is a miser on fuel. It only turns 1800 rpm wide open which adds to its ease on fuel. I mowed a lot of acres for 20 plus years with the 460 and 479 NH haybine. You won't find a better tractor for making square corners with the haybine. Gave it a new set of tires, a couple sets of spark plugs. Can't begin to guess how many hours were on it. It had been around the block and had an inoperable hour meter and 10 years hard use when we bought it and we gave it 33 years of hard use and the TA was still good in 2001 when it sold. Back in the 70s and 80s the 460 plowed, disced, mowed, baled, ran the forage chopper, hauled the wagons, picked all the corn. What a good tractor that was.

I have a 460lp. My haybine is self propelled but I do have a heavy JD 4 row shredder that I have run with the 460 and M family tractors and they do feel differently "under foot" even though they are rated for similar power.

The 4 cylinder has much more low end grunt than the 6 in the 460. However, once you get the RPM up and are making HP it runs the shredder just as good and has plenty of reserve power. Also you will have a TA for a little torque boost when needed. The 6 runs smoother and the power steering is nicer than the Behlen units.

IPTO is very nice to have for hay equipment and you'll wonder why you did so long without it. I've made round hay with an M and while it can be done it's much easier on everything and definately worth the extra parts for IPTO.

I always prefer wide front for hay so it doesn't get walked on. When I've baled with a NF I notice a little bit of hay "track" where the front end walked on the hay. It's hardly a measurable loss but it is noticeable to the eye and annoying.

FWIW, the block is the same as the 263 in the 560; different crankshaft.

Do check the hydraulic filter right away as they are often neglected.

As you are test driving the 460 make sure it has power steering. The 460 that I bought a number of years ago was not equipped with power steering. I was able to find the necessary parts to add power steering, sure is nice.