First, is an antenna or dummy load connected to the output?

For ssb, is the microphone gain turned up, and is there audio present? 
Simply keying the transmitter in ssb mode should not cause any output 
without the presence of modulation.

Is the grinding sound actually the antenna tuner?

If not, it's most likely something arcking over in the transmit section.

That means a trip to a repair shop such as avvid, if he wants to spend the 
money.

The 440 is a great old rig, but my experience is that a basic alignment is 
about $200, and anything else is extra.

There are certain parts of the 440, most notably the keypad, and the PLL 
circuits, that are proned to failure, and which can only be replaced with 
expensive after-market parts.

This holds the value of the 440 down on the used market, although some 
sellers hope potential buyers don't know that.

A clean, working TS440 can bring $400 or so if you're lucky. By comparison, 
a new Icom IC718 is under $600.

Having said all that, I still have a TS440 that I bought shortly after they 
hit the market in 1986. It lives at my mother's house, and is used 
occasionally when I'm there for a visit. The cover has been off maybe twice, 
and it still works fine. When it does go down, I'll have to decide whether 
to fix it or  not.

K5XU