Troubleshooting IH Model 444 Not Starting

[LeftyLand]

Well...I made a (hopefully) slight mistake the other day with what I believe is an IH 444 tractor (one of the stamped markings was 3044048R2). An old PTO connector was seized up on the tractor PTO shaft so I removed the bolts for the shaft guard to gain better access. Because of the amount of oily dirt built up on the rear end of the tractor, I missed that these bolts were also what held the rear PTO shaft main seal in place. I decided to leave the cover guard off until I was finished using the tractor and...you can probably guess... the rear PTO shaft pushed out of the housing while using the PTO. I turned the tractor off within a minute of the issuing happening. I was able to slide the rear shaft back into the internal sprocket, cleaned off the old gasket, installed a new gasket, and then checked the oil level via the plug on the left side of the tractor. However, when I went to restart the tractor, it is completely dead and will not even attempt to turn over. Based on some research on this site it appears that there may be an interlock in play, but I couldn't find more than a passing mention of them. I am hoping that some one can help me get this tractor running again.

Thanks, Evan

 

[used red MN]

Hello Evan welcome to YT. There is no ..interlock.. of
any sort on that tractor other than a switch on the
clutch that when functioning as originally intended will
not allow the starter to engage unless the clutch pedal
is depressed. Do any lights on the dash come on or
gauges move when you turn on the key? Or if you had
working lights will they come on with the switch? IF
NOT my guess is that it just so happened that one of
your battery cable terminals lost connection to the
battery post. The second scenario is if your lights did
work and you turn them on and they are very dim and
maybe go out in a minute this would mean your
charging system was possibly not working and your
battery simply went dead and now does not have
enough power to restart the tractor. Third, if you do
seem to have at least power to the dash, turn on the
lights. Then try to start it if the lights continue to shine
bright and the engine does not crank then it could be
the clutch safety switch causing a problem or the
solenoid or starter decided to go bad.

 

[Mrfred54]

Used red MN covered it all. Sounds like just coincidence that it won't start after
your pto issue.

 

[LeftyLand]

Thanks used red MN. The only thing that works on this particular tractor's dash is the coolant temp. A lot of farm done splicing and such on the wiring. Prior to the event, you would hear some clicking when you turned the key to the on position (assumed to be a relay(s)). I did switch to my truck battery in case the tractor battery had died, but no change. I will try cleaning the positive cable where it enters the terminal. Thanks again for the quick response and advice.

 

[LeftyLand]

Thanks Mrfred54. I appreciate the quick response!

 

[JimB2]

Hi, is your 444 Diesel or Gas?
See attached photo below and item #5 collar on PTO shaft that joins the front PTO drive shaft to the rear PTO shaft,
Hopefully the collar didn't fall off and is jambing something in the Diff area.
Be sure to hold the clutch pedal all the way to the foot rest will attempting to start the tractor as that will disengage both the
PTO and Transmission drive shafts.

 

[LeftyLand]

Hey JimB2, it's a diesel. If necessary, I would assume that I could drop the cover plate, pull the shaft out again, and look through the opening back at the collar area? Maybe that carries a higher risk than doing nothing. Thanks for the tip.

 

[JimB2]

Just giving you a word of caution when you do get it started that when you let the clutch out for the first time and the engine starts to stall then investigate future also be careful if you try to tow it as that collar could have drop down into one of the bull gears on the pinion shafts.
The start circuit is very simple on the Diesel version, can't remember if there is a clutch safety switch on the 444 or not, examine along the clutch pedal shaft and if there is a switch with two wires that contacts the upper side of the clutch pedal shaft then that is the clutch safety switch. In an emergency the two wires can be connected together to allow the tractor to start.
BUT fix/replace the switch as it is a REQUIRED SAFETY Device.

 

[LeftyLand]

It's been a month since I first posted, and I am happy to report that the tractor is back up and running as of a couple of weeks ago.

I was able to confirm that the collar had not dropped by engaging the PTO lever and then see that the shaft would not spin by hand.

The root cause ended up being an old, brittle wire that broke at some point between me starting it the last time and shutting it down. Fortunately we were able to resplice it and it started up as normal.

Thanks again for the advice and tips you provided on this issue!

This post was edited by LeftyLand on 05/10/2023 at 12:59 pm.