Look at the RPM that the torque is made with a 300. Off idle up to around 2500 RPM.

In other words, starting off and cruising.

The 460 makes its peak torque higher in the RPM range than a 300, and the 460's also typically come with lower gears than the 300 trucks do, which means that the 460's can get their RPM's up faster than a 300 with 3.08 rear gears.

If you put a set of 3.27 or 3.55 gears behind a 300 with a set of 31'' tires, you'd be absolutely amazed at what it will pull.

The 300's were put in F600's back around the late 60's/early 70's.

The 300 can pull anything that a 460 can. It won't accelerate as fast, but it'll darn sure pull it. Not to mention, a 300 has a longer stroke than a 460. Longer stroke = more leverage on the crank.

 

Once again... The 300 will pull anything you want it to. Heck, my old 4.0L Ranger would pull anything! A 4 cyl minivan will pull anything! You just dont wanna pull out in front of anyone... even if theyre on the horizon lol.
My 460 will also pull anything AND give you plenty of headway. Not to mention, it will also pull a trailer up hills. That 300 will have to kick down a couple times to go up a hill. But at the same time, when not pulling a trailer, a 300 can get up to double what a 460 will.

Boils down to what you use your truck for. If you just want good mpg and tow every once in while: 300s an excellent choice. Dont care about mpg and tow often... might wanna upgrade

 

I know, I know, I need to get back to work on it...

 

I disagree with most of that post. I have a 300 with 4.10s and a ZF. Yeah it will tow almost as much on flat ground but any hills at all and it's 3rd gear when I have more than about 13,000# gross. And pretty much never see 5th when towing. And it's getting 6-7 mpg because the 4 barrels are open almost all the time. So I can torture that old 300 and get 6 or step up to a 460, get over the hills a lot better and get 9-10 towing.
I have towed a bunch with it because it was the only truck I've had for 4 years. I have also used several of the ranches 460 5 speed F-350s and believe me, there isn't any part of the 300 that wins.

 

3rd gear up a hill pulling with a 300 and 13000 lbs? At what speed? 55 mph? So, at 55 mph, with a 300 and 4.10 gears in 3rd gear with a ZF5 which has a 3rd gear ratio of 1.42, you've got a final drive ratio of 5.82 with, I'm guessing, 31'' tires just for giggles.

That comes out to 3400 RPM. Even higher if you're above 55 MPH. The same figures at 60 and 65 are 3700 and 4100 RPM.

Meaning your winding it up too high, even with a 4bbl carburetor (which also makes me wonder, are you running under-intake heat?). You've got to remember that a 460 V8 and a 300 L6 are two completely different animals and require two completely different set of driving mannerisms.

The key to towing something like that with a 300 (yes even with a 4bbl) is that when you hit a hill, DON'T shift to a taller gear and wind the motor up. Keep it around 2500 RPM and it'll surprise you. You'll probably also manage better if you time your motor and tune your carburetor both with a vacuum gauge.

You're also the first person I've heard say that they can get 9 or 10 mpg out of a 460 while towing. Everyone I've heard that tows with a 460 is lucky to get over 8.

 

I get 10 towing and 11 otherwise. Of course thats about 6000 lbs worth. No one in in the world will get a lot towing 12000, including diesels

 

hers a brain tickler unless you are dead set on your motor and you might be but i have been very pleasantly surprised at the 391 hd i have in my truck amazing power and good gas mileage pulling loads i have pulled ungodly amounts of weight across the scales that they don't believe that i'm using a half ton 66 this thing gets 9 mpg with a 14000 load i wouldn't have believed it if i didn't see it either.... it gets 12 when unloaded i got it from a feed store from a f700 they had rolled onto its side and were gonna scrap it $400 later it was mine only thing i had to do was have a local machinist make a custom pilot shaft bushing i used stock 352 flywheel even though the nay sayer's say it will be unbalanced it is smooth as silk it makes great power and i would recommend it but a 300 is still a hell of a puller for what it is best of luck to you

 

I dont think there was a single period in that paragraph lol. Are you sure youve got your engine numbers right? Iv never heard of a 391 or a 352? Are you sure its not a 390 and 351?

 

ask number dummy he is the greatest at proofing info like that...... the 352 is just a hair less bore than a 360 or 390 and a short stroke in fact the 352 crank is what the 360 uses...... the 391 is a ft (ford truck) motor they are amazing they have over size crank and sleeves so rebuilding is a snap.... interestingly made timing cover / waterpump the torque numbers are similar to a 7.3 diesel horsepower same as 390 google it if you want lol

 

Ford 391:

Ford B-Series - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ford 352:

Ford FE engine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Learn somethin new everyday lol. It sounds like a beast either way though! Never know what your gonna find

 

No I'm not going 55 in third. Maybe 40-45 at most when I have a long hill and there's no sense going to 4th. Over the top I'll wind it on out to 50 or so before I shift. My engine is tuned and runs well but I do admit I don't have an intake heater on it which would probably gain me a little economy.
I've seen 460s get over 10 towing and I've seen some get a lot less. I'm not going to make an argument over 1-2 mpg. My sis has a 94 F-350 crew cab 4x4 with efi 460, ZF and 4.10s and it goes for months without being unhooked from a gooseneck stock trailer. It almost always gets around 10 but that is with some empty trailer time factored in too, but still towing.
I still stand by the fact that a big engine will generally get better mileage with a big load than a small engine will with a big load.
I love my 300 sixes but for towing, give me something that can do it with ease, not something that has to struggle. I'd chuck all the gassers for a good 6BT but that's a whole different discussion.

 

I sure hope you didn't pull that very far or very fast... guy my grandpa used to work with used to do stuff like that, most notably stacked a falcon on top of an old wagon that was loaded on a trailer built out of an old 2 ton, and then proceeded to hang another falcon off the back using just a set of chains. and then pulled it with a 1/2 ton dodge...

 

"I still stand by the fact that a big engine will generally get better mileage with a big load than a small engine will with a big load." Generally, that is correct. It takes X amount of energy to do Y amount of work. The bigger engine will generally do that easier than the smaller one.