So I decided to do some winter maintenance on our new to us 3000. Just got it in august so only used it for a few hours.
I noticed we had a leak coming from the hydraulic pump when we would use it for a few hours brush hogging.
I decided to take the pump off a rebuild it- I was thinking the seal on the shaft was letting hydraulic oil leak out.
Anyway I went thru the pump the other night. Had a heck of a time getting my pump to bleed. Got it this morning but my lift is now really slow and kinda jerky- I think that is a sign of air in the system? How long do you need to bleed the pump to get all the air out? I maybe bled it for a min or 2. Do I need to bleed somewhere else other than the pump?

Quoting Removed, click Modern View to see

Yes I still have the black flow knob. I think you are correct turn in for quicker.
Honestly now I am questioning everything and I cant even remember how quick the lift was before. What I did notice now if i pull up on the handle to raise the lift, it takes about 3 seconds for the arms to start moving. Then they will slowly rise up.

If the lift is working at all it should self bleed any air out automatically just by cycling the lift cylinder from fully down to fully up and back again a few times. Air in the system generally won't cause it to be slow anyway, but it can cause jerkiness when air bubbles are forced past tight spots in the plumbing.
If it is still slow, try turning the knob on the flow control valve. I believe that clockwise is for faster and counter-clockwise is for slower, but my age-addled mind might have that backwards.The flow control knob is down on the right side below the main 3 point control handle. It was originally a black plastic knob, but it may be whatever color the rest of that area of the tractor is now due to a previous repaint job.

ok update.
I decided to just order the new o rings for the suction line just to eliminate that as a problem.
pump primes without issue. my 3 pt lift is still very slow. I tried running a hose back to the rear end, did not really see any bubbles, let it run like that for 15 min.
what is the best way to bleed the air out of the lift? do i need to lift something heavy? just ride around? letting it run with the lift up or down?
i did not touch anything on the tractor except removing hydraulic pump, lift worked seemingly fine before, so i have no reason to believe the issue is anywhere out side of the pump. could I have possibly screwed up the pump rebuilt and its not making enough pressure? where do you check the pressure on a 3000? I saw reference to the plate under the seat, I have a remote valve so no plate with a hole, is there another spot?

yes mine is the old style manifold with 2 o rings.
I'm debating taking it back off and changing the o rings out for new ones just to eliminate that as a possible issue.

yes mine is the old style manifold with 2 o rings.
I'm debating taking it back off and changing the o rings out for new ones just to eliminate that as a possible issue.

There were two types of connections for the pressure and return lines on those.
Old style used a one piece manifold that attached to the pump with 3 bolts.
New style used seperate pressure and return lines. I have found on the old style that if I use new square type Orings from CNH I had better luck getting them to seal.
On the new style with seperate lines, washing the suction tube and hole with lacquer thinner then using a TINY amount of silicone on the tube (Never inside the hole) before pushing it in gave me the best results. Don't forget that there are two ends of the tube so check both ends.
Also, you should closely examine the suction tube for rust spots or holes. A very small pin hole can cause problems getting and holding prime.
More than once I got tired of swearing at the darned thing and just to settle my nerves jumped on the tractor and went for a leisurely ride. An hour later I checked the lift and it worked as it should.
As said by the others, they can be a bugger sometimes.

How long do these usually need to run to bleed out the air? I let it idle for maybe 15 min today. No change

If it did not improve, you likely have an air leak somewhere in your suction line.

I read somewhere in my googling about doing the hose thing. I have a setup to do that if necessary.
Is it worth getting the correct square o rings for the lines or if it pumping they are ok?

Quoting Removed, click Modern View to seeOn what model tractor, Mike?

Put a hose barb in the bleed port of the pump and run a hose back to the fill plug on the rear end then let it run. May take while.

Just letting it run will accomplish the same thing. The bleed port is necessary just to get it started.

Those pumps are notoriously hard to bleed. Best advice if you already have oil going through the pump is to just keep running it. Over time, it will improve. If it doesn't, you still have an air leak somewhere.

Also I forgot to mention I didnt have the correct square o rings to put on the lines so re used to old ones- where lines connect to pump. Maybe that is my issue using the old ones? Im going to try to get some today