Nope, the shield is 100% intact with the same clearance as a 22.5" MT.
Did you slice the top of the handle and re-form it for higher clearance?
Yep! Sliced the top, unbent it, rebent it at the taller position and drilled all the new hardware holes needed.
Wow, that's gutsy! It's amazing you were able to do this with trashing the porcelain where the handle meets the lid. Any tips for that? Again, great job!
The porcelain didn't survive. But it's just black paint so I touched it up. The handle looks pretty good, almost OEM. It passes the 5 foot test no problem.
If one is so inclined it can be straightened, sanded, and painted but I didn't want to get too intensive with it. The thermometer hole/slot was also added to the lid. It fits like oem! The MT thermometer shield style is my favorite, accuracy be damned.
I also had to craft those little tabs that keeps the handles from rotating. I used a screw that I cut down then drilled and inserted them into the wood handle. You can't tell one bit. I have some behind the scenes pics that I can post when I am not feeling lazy.