Issues with damper

[Ctwoodtick]

I want to make a new thread for this hiccup that I’m running into at the moment. My goal was to add a block off plate and also insulate the bottom 18 inches of my heavy wall liner, as it was left, not insulated by the installer about seven years ago. As it stands currently, the old cast-iron damper had been left in place and when I look up the chimney, it looks like it’s making some slight contact with the liner itself. It does not appear that the liner has sustained any damage come as it’s not dented or noticeably messed up, but it’s also very difficult to get a good picture with the tight quarters of that area. My concern has been that with the liner, expanding and contracting with heat, damage could be occurring gradually. Interestingly, if I push back on the face of the insert slightly, I gain 1/16 of an inch maybe you can see a bit of daylight. Going to put a metal shim underneath the stove to see if I can more permanently have the insert “push pushed back” so that I can gain whatever clearance possible. The pictures below are when I was simultaneously pushing the insert back a little bit, creating the small bit of clearance between liner and damper. I was able to take a good look up the liner from inside the stove after having swept the liner very well and did not notice any signs of any issues.
I tried today to cut through the damper with a good carbide blade on a small saws all and it really appeared to be a no go. The progress was incredibly slow, and I really did not want to risk any damage to the installed liner by going any further with it in that incredibly tight spot.
I’m wondering if I’m just overthinking the idea of the liner being in contact with the old damper frame. Thank you for any input you might be able to give.

 

[begreen]

A jig saw or sawzall can be too slow, especially if the damper moves with the vibrating strokes of the saw. An angle grinder is faster. However, the area is tight under where the liner hits the damper. This makes it a hard to work area. The right way to do this is to detach and then pull up the liner so that it's out of way and the cut can be done without risk to the liner. Angle grinders are faster, but not forgiving if one slips.