you dont need to anymore.
The pci-e slots now are reinforced on most boards now.
You would literally need to apply a lot of force to snap them or the card.
now if your going to watercool them tho, that's a different story as the waterblock can get pretty heavy depending on the materials, however still they will handle a watercooled gpu fine and then some.
Very true, although from the OP's post he either doesn't have a board like that or doesn't trust it to work that way.
In today's world, these brackets/separators prevent warpage/bending of the video cards themselves and are easier to implement than the "L" shaped braces that attach to the I/O part of the case sold for the same purpose, especially if using multiple heavy cards.
They have the advantage of being a universal fit to any video card, rather than specific to one series or brand.
They are not physically attached to the video card.
They support the cards and prevent then from partially "popping" out of the slot when moving the case around, if installed properly.
They are pretty much a universal fit to any case and can be adapted to any case.
They allow you to maintain a consistent spacing between multiple cards/video cards for cooling that doesn't change due to the video cards sagging or warping with age when in an upright case.
They are easily made with aluminum angle and nylon/plastic materials, easily found at big box/DIY stores, for those that want to DIY.
For those that are inclined and DIY, they can be used as a means of hiding wiring or LED strips.
BTW, these type brackets/separators were never meant for slot support in their original usage, they were to maintain the uniform physical separation of heavy cards when used in a vertical server case. EISA and PCI-X slots physically supported much more of the card by the connector than PCI-E slot does so that wasn't a real problem when the case was vertical. The problem was cards with internal cables and/or heatsinks attached sagged over time and could actually come in physical contact with adjacent cards. This was especially true of RAID and HBA cards, as they had relatively large and heavy heatsinks on them because of the size and power consumption of the chips of that era and also the lack of "progress" in heatsink design at that point in time.
Can we agree they still have their uses ?