IH 1206 Introduction

[stronger800]

I was under the impression that there wasn’t 200hp to be adjusted out of the pump and that it took pump modification to get there?

[ihcbill]

Grandpa bought the first 1206 that Harney-Morgan in Aledo ILL got in the winter of '65 with a new 700 7-16'' on land hitch plow -and that's how it got broke in. It would pull it ok but dad said at times 6 would have been better then the 12 got traded in 1970 for a new 1456 which we still have and it pulled the plow a lot better. the plow has also stayed here but we lost track of the 1206 around 1975 but about 10 years ago dad found the original bill of sale for it with the serial number and after posting it on here we had it located about an hour south of here and we got it bought and back home. The FUNNY thing is i saw it listed on ebay around 2008 at Lewistown ILL and told dad we should buy it because it was an early one with a decal cause we probally wont ever find grandpas.......

[Drysleeves]

3 hours ago, ihcbill said:

Grandpa bought the first 1206 that Harney-Morgan in Aledo ILL got in the winter of '65 with a new 700 7-16'' on land hitch plow -and that's how it got broke in. It would pull it ok but dad said at times 6 would have been better then the 12 got traded in 1970 for a new 1456 which we still have and it pulled the plow a lot better. the plow has also stayed here but we lost track of the 1206 around 1975 but about 10 years ago dad found the original bill of sale for it with the serial number and after posting it on here we had it located about an hour south of here and we got it bought and back home. The FUNNY thing is i saw it listed on ebay around 2008 at Lewistown ILL and told dad we should buy it because it was an early one with a decal cause we probally wont ever find grandpas.......

That is a crazy story.

We plowed with the 1206 and 1456 in late fall a couple years back, both pulling 5x18's. The 14 would run circles around the 12 until dark when a cold front arrived with increased humidity and the temperature dropped from 60 to 45. That was the second time I was in the seat of the 1206 under similar environmental circumstances. It's as if you've flipped an imaginary switch and all at once the turbo whistle changes dramatically and as if by magic another 25 hp arrives from somewhere beyond. All the spots in the field where the tractor was called on the carpet while the sun shined suddenly become unrecognizable from the rest.

[Diesel Doctor]

23 hours ago, Drysleeves said:

Guy I know was a mechanic in his younger days at an IH dealer around here. A 1206 was traded in and the boys in the shop decided the 12 needed some dyno exercise so they hooked up, got it sufficiently warm, and started turning the screw. He said it made 225 hp with more available but the pto started to slip. The smoke was glorious.

I done a few pumps on these.

I would bottom the leaf spring and put it on the dyno.

Always over 200 hp.

Would then turn the fuel screw down to that 150 mark and let it run.

 

[stronger800]

Same pump capacity as an 806/856?

[nomorejohndeere]

[superih]

Had the pump on my 856 rebuilt,  first time on the test stand it was putting out way over 1456 spec, right around 200 horse worth,  we set it around 110, haven't had it on a dyno to verify though. 

[Mark (EC,IN)]

5 hours ago, superih said:

Had the pump on my 856 rebuilt,  first time on the test stand it was putting out way over 1456 spec, right around 200 horse worth,  we set it around 110, haven't had it on a dyno to verify though. 

What turbo is on your 856?

[766 Man]

On 6/22/2023 at 9:35 PM, stronger800 said:

Very rare to see a 706 in this part of New York. An 806 was more common, but not nearly as common as a 1066. My father plowed with our 806 (6-16’s) with a turbo for 15 years before getting our first 1066. He was really disappointed as well, but the in field pump adjustment fixed that. It still has a tad less power than 806, but a lot more traction. I have an 856 with a turbo that’s almost as powerful. Neighbor had a 1206 that he bought fairly new, and a 1066 that he bought new. He always considered a 1066 his bigger tractor. Still has it, it’s an animal.

  Back in those days addressing traction was as important as boosting power.  I saw more than a few tractor turned up but had bad slippage in the rear tires.  

[Farming Enthusiast]

Would it be fair to say if we're "turning them up" that the 1206,1256,1066 and 1086 would be pretty much equal in capability in the field considering the real limit of there capability is the driveline? For example, I've heard several times on this forum that a good setting to run these tractors in the field is around 150-160 hp. I do know the 1086 has larger axles but I think the rest of the final drive is pretty much the same?

[Drysleeves]

1 hour ago, Farming Enthusiast said:

Would it be fair to say if we're "turning them up" that the 1206,1256,1066 and 1086 would be pretty much equal in capability in the field considering the real limit of there capability is the driveline? For example, I've heard several times on this forum that a good setting to run these tractors in the field is around 150-160 hp. I do know the 1086 has larger axles but I think the rest of the final drive is pretty much the same?

Seems reasonable. Had a neighbor with a 1086 making 190 hp and it smoked the head gasket. Turned it down to 150 and got along just fine.

[superih]

16 hours ago, Mark (EC,IN) said:

What turbo is on your 856?

No turbo

[Diesel Doctor]

On 6/23/2023 at 10:47 AM, stronger800 said:

I was under the impression that there wasn’t 200hp to be adjusted out of the pump and that it took pump modification to get there?

I did it all the time by bottoming the leaf spring.

Easy 200 HP.

But I would not run one long term at that HP.

Then you have holes blown in pistons and other engine issues.

They loved that 150 mark.

[Mark (EC,IN)]

On 6/28/2023 at 8:52 AM, superih said:

No turbo

Wow,  I didn't know a person could get 200 horses out of an 856 without extra air.

[snoshoe]

1 hour ago, Mark (EC,IN) said:

Wow,  I didn't know a person could get 200 horses out of an 856 without extra air.

You can't. He was just putting 200 hp worth of fuel into it.

[superih]

42 minutes ago, snoshoe said:

You can't. He was just putting 200 hp worth of fuel into it.

On the test stand the pump was putting out that much fuel,  we set the pump around 110 horse of fuel, I haven't dynod the tractor to verify what it is making but it runs much stronger than before. 

[nepoweshiekfarmalls]

During the Roundup in Grand Island,  my Uncle and I  were talking about his days at Custer Implement in Tama IA.  The local "big farmer"  purchased 2 new 806 diesel tractors with MFD.  After a season, he decided the machines were not big enough to handle the tillage and planting equipment he was pulling. So, he traded them in on a pair of 1206's.  My uncle helped with the task of swapping the MFD axles under the 1206's.  Then both machines were turned up on the dyno.  No further complaints about lack of power from the owner of the machines!