Maxtrax mounts - retrofit

[Gobi1]

G'day Team,
We're getting more serious with our tow vehicle (swapping 2018 VW Tiguan for new Land Rover Defender) and I reworked the 4x plates on the rear deck of our Mk5 Zenith to take Maxtrax mounts / recover boards.
I drilled 10mm holes in each plate, drilled out rivets before installing Maxtrax mounting pins and re-riveting with stainless rivets. Pretty easy, however this was in the standard (thin) plate material.
Q. Have others done this with long-term success, or should I use thicker plates (which I think Track use on their factory installations)?
Love to get the experience of the group on whether I'm in for grief (i.e. cracking), even  if kept joints nice and tight?

Happy adventuring,
GobiOne

[robstevens]

I did what you did - no problems so far. (that's with two Matrix secured on the back. Because the plates are almost vertical, the forces on them don't really "bend" them at all. It is more of a shear force, which they are easily strong enough to cope with. No problems in about 4 years of travels now.

[Gobi1]

Thanks Rob,
Appreciate the quick response. Loads are indeed in shear, so I'm hopeful keeping things tight will present few problems.
Cheers,
Gobi1