The pin can be removed easily with a roll pin punch but I can't say how the unit armorers did it, they may have had a special tool. I am installing this hardware on my USGI M14 stock so it looks right and fills the hole in the stock. The pieces are fastened to the stock itself so it is legal. The semi-auto M1A(as Springfield named it)doesn't have the leg coming down off the rear of the reciever that is used to mount the pieces on an M14, so it has to be fastened to the stock itself. I am hoping to be done with it sometime tomorrow, if I do I'll post some pictures. The game wardens where I live have TRW M14s as their service rifles and they all have the selector lock installed, no happy switch for them.