Smock backspacer

[Scottpomeroy]

I picked up a smock and have a meton boss backspacer on order. My question; is it necessary to remove the top scale and liner to install or can I just loose the body screws and slip it in and retighten. It looks like it has no drilled holes and is held in place by torque. As for the knife, I love everything about it except for the blade cutout/ kinda finger choil. To me it begs for a backspacer. Any thoughts or knowledge would be greatly appreciated.