RE: Tractor/Truck engines

[Don Bowen <donb@domain.elided>]

At 10:33 AM 12/5/97 -0800, Jim Grammer wrote:
>>However, the Farmall 460/560 introduced in about 1958 had
>>the truck's BD 6cyl.  In fact, some people claim that it was IH's
>>death knell, they were getting way behind JD and so they
>>threw together an M tranny with the 6cyl and
>>the result was a lot of metal chips and a permanent loss of
>>market leadership.
>
>Did the 460/560 really have that bad a reputation in service? I'd had 
>something like that in mind for a utility tractor, if I can find one with a 
>loader.

The 6 cylinder tractors had a reputation of eating up bearings in the final
drive.  It was little more than a 450 with a bigger motor.  Field changes
to the rear bearings solved the problems but not before the reputation
built up over many years took a major hit.  

Read Corporate Tragedy for a good explanation of IHC demise.  (The book is
available from Binder Books at scott@domain.elided)  Sloppy management and
greedy unions combined with a bad farm market brought the tractor division
down.  The truck division escaped after dumping the light line.  Tractors
went to Case, construction equipment went to Dresser industries, Solar went
to Cat, etc.

Don Bowen			Senior Software Engineer
Valley Center, CA		Virtual Integrators
donb@domain.elided			Don.bowen@domain.elided

http://www.users.cts.com/crash/d/donb
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