I have tested the Riva, Blowsion 5 fin, Prowatercraft and Watercross of Texas intake grates. We don't have any surf here so I can't comment on that, but below is my assessment:
- Riva: An improvement over the stock grate, but not enough. It allows for higher speed as it isn't very aggressive. Does not stay hooked up well in chop or around buoys. My least favorite, I gave it to a friend who just wanted something other than stock...do not recommend
- Blowsion 5 fin: Excellent grate for rec riding! Stays hooked up well in medium-rough chop and allows for good top speed. In really choppy conditions it would start to fade. It seems fairly aggressive without compromising a lot of top speed. For me, I struggled to stay hooked up around the buoys but I absolutely recommend this grate to everyone as an all around grate. If I was casually riding buoys it was fine, but when I ride aggressively it would come unhooked. Fit & Finish is unmatched, thi is a piece of artwork.
- Prowatercraft: Aggressive with fantastic hookup in all rec riding conditions, flatwater to medium chop, to heavy chop. I really like this grate and thought it was my #1 choice until I rode with the WCOT grate. I used this grate on Saturday at a race, but in race-condition chop I was coming unhooked quite often and put the WCOT on for Sunday with better results. Rarely have to clean the weeds out of this grate. Fit & finish leaves something to be desired, but doesnt affect performance.
- WCOT: The only choice for aggressively running buoys and racing. Very aggressive and the best hookup of them all, which comes at the expense of lower top speed. This grate gets me 57 mph with a pretty full tank of gas in smooth conditions. I often have to stop and clean the grate as it is a weed eater, which is slightly annoying. As stated, I switched to this grate for Sundays races and saw a noticeable improvement. A lot of people have had to file the holes to get the bolt pattern to line up, but mine went on without modification.
With that said, I have recommended to friends the Blowsion 5 fin or Prowatercraft as a good all around grate. I am running the Prowatercraft grate now for rec riding, but I will put the WCOT back on for any buoys/racing. I don't need the WCOT hookup for lake riding. To me, the Prowatercraft and WCOT grates are neck and neck.
For reference I am 6'2 approx. 245 lbs. I am running a Prowatercraft plate, which I like so far. I'd like to try a WCOT but it would only be for running buoys.
