Do lower control arm reinforcement plates actually work?

With the big holes in them water will easily run out.
I've welded some homemade plates on my own LCA's, but while doing that I also wondered what or how much this would 'really' do or help, besides adding weight on an unsprung suspension part.
In hind sight I think a few 1" strips of metal welded across the LCA would have the same result, and be of less weight at the same time.

The LCA's on the later '73+ A-bodies get loaded on the side more because of the swaybar-brackets somewhere in the center.
I do think it's a bit of concern to keep the torsionbar adjuster 'tight' between the LCA-sides... So clamp them down a bit from the side before welding the plates on the LCAs.