I went cheap with all my stuff as well but my worst enemy was myself and not taking myself into consideration. Not being comfortable with the fact that I have an addictive personality that if I went fast I'd want to go a little faster and a little faster. When you mentioned Slick's that means serious traction not street tires. again you didn't mention if you had a 4-speed or an automatic which makes a big difference. An automatic keeps the load on the car were a 4-speed unloads and reloads in every year and puts much more strain on the rear end...
I think welding a brace on it will only be for like you said looking cool, but in the end might be its ultimate demise by warping it... Bracing it won't stop the axles from twisting or the Caps from blowing off...
Also what kills it is a hard hook not a good ET...