Ryan'smilling
Addicted to ArboristSite
I've never done it myself, I let guys like you do it and then buy the saws from them . That's the way I've heard to do it, takes a lot less time than grinding the whole thing out. It is nice to have a stock saw at times, been on plenty of jobs it was what was best, but I usually like the sound of at least a mild muffler mod . They sell the torx security bits at most the big box stores these days or you can order them online. Some guys break the center out of them and use a regular torx, or use a flat screwdriver on them, but I'm not sure if the flat screwdriver technique would work on the transfer covers.
I tried breaking the little nib that's in there, but didn't have any luck. Didn't want to break anything else. Tried a flathead too without success. Actually my regular Torx driver got 3 of the 8 out without a problem. I guess the nibs weren't quite as tall as needed to deter tampering. Luckily my neighbor had a set of them, so I didn't have to drive far. Right tool for the job made it a cinch.
I definitely need to revisit the muffler. I do like a little bark to them. I'd also like to grind the slot on my Stihl mount tsumura 20" bar so I can use it with an @Homelite410 adapter. I think that 2166 with the lightweight tsumura bar will be a nice firewood saw.