Don't we all love home/barn owners that decide to remove braces because they seem to be in the way and there also seem to be just to many of them? The frame still holds up but dare you to remove the siding.

Todays siding cannot be compared with the cladding 100 years ago. It is only 1/2" thick at the most. Old siding was 1". So it could very well strenghten the frame even if braces were removed.