Honda 2000 generator preventive maintenance

[Calypso52]

Following the advice of Jaime on s/v Totem, I launched into some preventive maintenance on our Honda. I removed the muffler to paint with high temperature Rustoleum paint. Lo and behold, no gasket between the muffler and the exhaust pipe. Someone at the factory was in a rush that day. Might be my imagination but seems to run more quietly with a gasket. Also if yours is still relatively new you might want to take those three bolts off and coat the threads with your favorite anti seize. Mine has just 50 hours on it (4 years old, always covered from salt spray) and they were on the verge of being frozen.