I have a nice 312 muffler removed from a machine that got parted. I cleaned it up with the wire wheel and applied 4-5 coats of Deere muffler black paint. It does not rattle and pieces do not fall out if you shake it. This piece has some denting that I tried to capture in the pics. This muffler...

I finally got to put my garden tractor to work this winter.I plowed my driveway without too many issues.Part of my drive is gravel so I got stuck at first. A bit more weight and I think it would be awesome!