I haven't seen this article in some time. I think it may have been related to the Kirk Killer Kohler build (the guy who came up with the "points saver" setup) but I read something a while ago, where someone took one of those ~5" round mufflers (Cub Cadet maybe?) apart and redid the baffles, added some glass mat and welded it back together. Where to get glass mat these days? It made a huge difference in how that engine sounded.... but a cast iron Kohler sounds way different than your engine regardless of exhaust setup..... always will.
On a related note, I just brought home another Ariens GT16 with yeah, a single cyl cast iron Kohler, the end cap was blown apart on the end closest to the muffler inlet. It was borderline obnoxious. I briefly looked for a replacement online, and sized up some of my stash I had, none of which I could make work/ unless I didn't want to run the hood and/or grill. I couldn't see much within, but it looked like at least some baffles were still intact.
Though I've never seen a cutaway of the muffler I have to work with.
But I had to do "something". And that "something" involved working with some materials I haven't messed with in way too long. It was way too thin for the MIG, even at the lowest setting. so I brought out the torch tanks and gauges, and took the cutting head off, switched to the brazing tip. I straightened the bent/blown out end cap. and re crimped it around the body with more old school hammer and punch work. / then glass beaded the ends, and used 2 whole sticks of coated old school brazing rod, (one per end) brazed both end caps all the way around, to hold them to the center body and seal them at the same time. I only needed to do 1 end "right now". But "as long as I had the torch set up" I did both ends.
Much better.
I cant believe that even with a blown out end, how much that muffler still quieted this machine down,,, as I found out when I had to start it to move it while I had the muffler on the bench.... yikes.
