Success! I was able to remove the cover of the 1010 transformer. I did use a small metal puddy knife to get the grippers to pop by just gently twisting a bit. I had ordered several replacement cords from the Train Tender and will look to replace the cord later today. Below are some pictures of the separated pieces.
Below shows the metal grippers that hold the transformer to its case.
the replacement cord has the "L" logo. How cool is that!
