Just as a counter point:
This is one of those things that may be greatly influenced by the type of diving you do, your frequency, and the nature of your diving environment.
The removal of boots was as a result of tight passageways, either cave or wreck, and the desire to present the absolutely minimal profile. In fresh water caves the trapping of water is hardly an issue. Although, it certainly is if you aren't properly rinsing your gear after saltwater dives.
Several years ago I removed the boots from my gauges in an effort to adopt as many DIR ways as possible. The result was 3 broken gauges over a 24 month period. One do to my own clumsiness, one do to the clumsiness of another, and one do to someone not securing their gear properly for the trip out to the dive site.
Since I'm not typically diving in environments that "ratcheting" would be a concern and because I insist on actually dunking and soaking my gear after dives, I opted to replace the boots on my spg's. In the two years that have followed, I haven't lost a single gauge again.
As durable as gauges are, it requires a surprising small ding to the bezel to break the seal and allow water to enter the gauge and ruin it.
Just my experience, most folks don't have issues with bare gauges.