Having been there and done that I would suggest the following. You can remove the front support brace easily enough and the rear hinge brace/bow can be partially removed without drilling out the rivets that secure it to the side hood lip. Once you remove the center plate of the rear brace you can get to any rust that may be hidding under the brace to treat it, remove it, and/or paint it. I would suggest not removing the rivets. I had to on my hood so I could move the brace to another hood shell but the re-attachment was difficult. It can be done but you probably do not need to go that far to do what you want.
