IH 2444 novice rebuilder

Hydraulic fluid, Should it be changed? How to tell if it is low, etc. Also, is there anything else I should check before I fire it up. Tractor has a IH 2000 loader on front. Thanks

Drain the hydraulic oil from the plug on the right rear of the hydraulic housing. That is where the seat is fastened. Remove the hose couple in the front of that housing to service the filter. The filter is a mess screen that is reusable. Refill the system through the plug that is on top of the housing in the right rear corner. Fill to the bottom of the fill opening, about three gallons.

The transmission is drained through three plugs on the bottom. The fill plug is near the transmission shift lever. The level check plug is on the side of the housing. It will hold about five gallons for a standard tractor, eight and a half for a low boy model.

If you have the front mounted pump, driven off the crankshaft, do not use the side plug to check the transmission fluid level. Instead you have to measure down six inches from the top of the fill opening. The front mounted pump draws the oil from the transmission instead of the hydraulic reservoir. The return oil from the front pump is returned to the hydraulic reservoir and then allowed to overflow back into the transmission so with the extra pump those oils are constantly being mixed.