Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

I have a Craftsman 10hp snowblower, model 536.886331
I've rebuilt the carb, changed the spark plug, tightened the belts, and the machine still stalls the moment it encounters snow. If I take a small path of the snow it will 'throw' the snow about 4 feet. The engine is running at 3200 rpms with no load. I've adjusted the high speed screw to be richer, but it still stalls the same. The governor seems to be working, as I can push on the throttle control bracket when at full throttle and I can feel the governor push back against me. I've seen other posts say that the muffler can get carbonized and blocked, robbing power especially under load. Could this be the issue? Is there any problem to taking off the muffler to see how it runs? other than going deaf