Well, you may not have to remove the carb for cleaning. Remove the bowl, and bend the straw from the jet spray carb cleaner so that you blow up through the very center of the stem. Reassemble and see what you have. You are correct that in the service manual, Toro always had you remove the parts outward in. IE the governor arm so you could get the link off and slide it out. Normally you would take the two nuts and lock them together on 1 stud and turn the stud out.

I thought of cleaning it in place, but the carb cleaner supposedly attacks the float and I don't fancy standing on my head to pull the pin out. I know it attacks the fuel line, because I sprayed it around on the outside and a couple of days later it began to drip and smell. The fuel line was pretty thoroughly dissolved, leaving a nasty sticky residue.

I also considered the jam-nut trick, but I worried that I would twist off a stud. Maybe I'll try that after using some penetrating oil or WD- 40.

Thanks for the suggestions.

After lots of WD-40 the studs came out, so now I can proceed in the normal way to clean up the carb. Thanks.

Good deal and good luck.