if they used a moulded trim(one piece) then cutting out the brace may not be a good idea as they do this to get away with using thinner glass so the thickness of your glass and tanks dimensions would need to be looked at, removing the center brace could very well be removing the support it needs in the center.
doing a eurobrace may again depending on the tanks glass thickness be an option , pm me your details if you like and i can offer you some advice
cheers
denny
concept aquariums