ISO 3448
ISO VG 460 at temperature
ISO VG 460 is a heavy industrial grade: midpoint 460 mm²/s at 40°C, window 414 to 506. Slow, loaded enclosed gears and a large share of worm drives are specified here.
The ISO 3448 window at 40°C is 414 to 506 mm²/s. The midpoint used below is 460.
At a 40°C sump, a VG 460 oil really is about 460 cSt, and it will churn. At an 80°C sump the same nameplate is a much thinner oil, which is the whole point of reading the table before you decide the box is “already on a heavy oil.” Hot plants and slow mills often go one grade heavier, to 680 or 1000. Those grades follow the same ±10% rule at 40°C. They are on the ISO VG chart.
| °C | VI 95 | VI 150 |
|---|---|---|
| 20 | 2,054 | 1,540 |
| 40 | 460 | 460 |
| 60 | 147 | 177 |
| 80 | 61.0 | 82.5 |
| 100 | 30.3 | 44.2 |
The 100°C figures on this page are illustrative. ISO 3448 specifies the grade at 40°C only. Each column is the viscosity of an oil that hits the grade midpoint at 40°C and the stated viscosity index, solved with ASTM D2270, then moved to other temperatures with the ASTM D341 Walther equation (constant 0.7). A dash means that viscosity index would put the oil below 2 mm²/s at 100°C, where ASTM D2270 does not define VI. Use the data sheet in the converter when you have one.
Put the data sheet’s own 40°C and 100°C numbers into the two-point calculator. The viscosity index of those two points is explained on the viscosity index page.
Where this grade shows up
Worm gearboxes are the other home of VG 460, often as the light end of a 460 / 680 / 1000 family. Sliding contact and a bronze wheel change the chemistry decision as well as the grade. That is the worm gear oil page. Spur and helical selection by pitch-line velocity is the gearbox page.
Compare branded products on oilviscositychart.com. The other heavy grades are ISO VG 220 and ISO VG 320.
Questions
What is the ISO VG 460 range?
414 to 506 mm²/s at 40°C. Midpoint 460 mm²/s. ISO 3448.
Is VG 460 always the right worm gear oil?
No. Many worm plates specify 460, and many specify 680 or 1000, especially when the sump runs hot or the wheel is slow. The plate and AGMA 9005’s wormgear recommendation decide it. Viscosity at the running temperature decides whether that grade still has a film.