360° vs 180° vs 270° Crankshaft Angles in Parallel Twin Engine | Explained

[@stevepage2541]

The 270 is a nice lumpy twin but with that distinctive 'vee' voice ... then,there's the staccato rasp of the 360...or the manic howl of the 180. Bloody hell,spoiled for choice here!

[@crippleguy415]

Nothing will ever sound as good as an old Triumph Bonny with 360 degree crank . Lots of torque .

[@datseverywhere140]

I’m a fan of 270 degree crank. Sounds best

[@mongerrr]

For me it's the 315 degree twin in the Husqvarna nuda. Second would be the 285 degree KTM Duke 890

[@the.communist]

I had a mt07 n a mt03, cb500x ( both 180°), stock pipes, the sound i liked the least was the mt07

[@r.i.p2464]

@@mongerrr 315 is an equivalent of harley davidson's 45°vtwin.

[@rahulsharma255]

Yes royal Enfield interceptor 650 has it

[@tomtemple69]

​@@mongerrrthe Duke 285 degree is my favorite

[@hwy1310]

My Triumph Street Scrambler (2019) has a liquid cooled parallel twin, 270 degree firing angle. The low-end torque is phenomenal, smooth as silk transmission, and the stock exhaust sounds great.

[@rcnelson]

Enlightening. Nothing sounds better than a 360 degree vertical twin, though.

[@johns.1898]

Thank God

[@chrishart8548]

Sounds like a bmw boxer engine.

[@freddy7700]

Very good explained. Thanx a bunch. I prefer the 270°, best sound, similar to a V2 and it has good torque from down below.

[@JETZcorp]

Torque and power will be almost the same in all of them. The only way the cylinders can affect each other at all is exhaust pulse scavenging through the header collector. The 360 is the only one that can really make good use of that, but most of those bikes had independent twin exhausts. However since the 270 is most popular today, there are a lot of great torquey engines in that configuration. The Yamaha MT-07 would have had equally awesome torque even if it was in a different configuration. I agree 270 does sound the best.

[@grei12]

I might sound stupid. But INLINE, as in IN LINE, it has its own pistons in the same row. V engines, coming up to its name, It forms a V shape like V5, V6, V7, V8, V9, V10, etc. So that is why it is called INLINE as its pistons form a vertical line. Have a nice day!

[@EierSchnapps]

"Well" explained. "Good" is not an adverb.

[@thorick590]

correction: the Yamaha XS650 has no balance shaft. You get the full shake n' bake, builds strong character 9 ways.

[@constantinosschinas4503]

8:20 Yamaha TRX850, 1996, the first production 270 degree twin. Wonderful bike. Bought it new, riden many set of tyres to their limit, donated it to a friend some years ago.

[@jonathanhill8268]

Would have been nice to have heard the differences!

[@catingloves]

Great explanation. Of differences between the 3 types. It explains similarity well between 270°and 90°V twin

[@Eldariooirad]

Loved every second of your explanations, including your perfect diction and pleasurable, professor like voice. Thank you!

[@vagabondsoldier4353]

Love the CP2 engine in my XSR. Sounds great and love the smooth and linear power delivery.

[@vijaykalla]

I have speed twin. 270 degree crank angle... The pulse you get is indescribable

[@truethought369]

270 is best due to one piston moving at its fastest halfway point, as the other has to change direction. This keeps & helps it do that. Giving momentum! But, I still like the sound of the 360°.

[@roverchap]

The terminology is often used interchangeably, if not correctly. Parallel just means that the cylinders are bored in the same plane, and nothing to do with how the pistons are moving within. All crank arrangements for twins are parallel unless it's a boxer or V-twin. I prefer the traditional sound of a 360 degree - the even firing pulses. This is the classic sound of the British twins I grew up with. A Boxer sounds the same, with even firing pulses. V-twins always sound off beat, which is charismatic. 180 twins are raspy and harsh, 270s just sound like a V-twin - a nice sound but detracts from the uniqueness of a parallel twin.

[@williamfischer3990]

For me the sound of a motorcycle is more important then anything else, and the 270’ is so much better.

[@liamtuthill]

than anything else? really?

[@cisarvialpando7412]

Sound is more important... My fav is 360°

[@stevebayross7248]

I had 3 Trx850s from 2000 to 2010 epic bike unloved at that time you could buy them for pennies.... Barn corner at Cadwell park is the place to understand the genius of the 270degree crank, it used to drive and slide beautifully & made a average rider look good.....

[@HegelsOwl]

Really? It effects handling?

[@alm4132]

@@HegelsOwl For power slides it does!

[@alistairbernard9574]

Excellent Feature On The Different Types of Cranks. 👍

[@jerryw6699]

It's been a great experience, listening to Kermit The Frog explain motorcycle engines

[@donshell9358]

Personally, I think the 360 best sounding, but you really can't beat the smoothness of the 270. Though I find the 270 to be rather generic sounding

[@thirdiii171]

You come up to motorcycle becuase of the sound? Dude engineering of motorcycle is not about sound. If the engineer playing the position of the piston and its firing order it just because many dumb men like rumbling sounds and not care about durability,this is what company wants a dumb men just enjoying sound.

[@chrishart8548]

@@dvdh4937 the 800 bmw engine is as smooth as a 4 cylinder below 4k. But it gets really buzzy after 5k. It's the trade off with the balancer rod dummy weight. It's actually a lot smoother than the 850 replacement with 270° crankshaft. The vibration is just spread out more across the rpm range with the 850cc

[@devme20]

@@thirdiii171 bro he liked the sound of the engine and ya made a rant about it... Like wtf. Dude didn't talk about how 360 performance or anything, he just gave a innocent answer saying he prefers the 360 sound because he likes it. Like damn bro when you made this comment were you in a bad mood? Like damn bro.

[@the_undecidead]

@@thirdiii171 Yo! Why you so upset?

[@billd.8336]

I love the sound of an older Triumph Bonneville with the 360 crank. Sound is a matter of taste. It was a 2007 with a balancer shaft and had an extremely minimal amount of vibration.

[@UPTHETOWN]

270 degree 650 Interceptor sounds & feels lovely

[@ladamyre1]

I used to have a Honda CX500, but it's a different animal entirely. If I were to buy a new bike, I think I would get one of the Moto Guzzi twins.

[@tallens5280]

Great info. I've been confused about this as the "parallel twin" is all the rage these days. I'm in the market for a new bike, so thanks.

[@deltabluesdavidraye]

They misname them .Calling 270 parallel

[@kasperkjrsgaard1447]

The cylinder lines are parallel. Therefor a parallel twin regardles of 360˚, 180˚ or 270˚?

[@kingtheking1234]

So, which engine should I choose?

[@alvarocobo192]

Conocía esto, pero no había encontrado ningún video que hable de esto, muy bueno, pero hubiese gustado que muestres la diferencia de sonido entre cada motor, que es muy notable y suenan bien los 3!

[@billd.8336]

Article fails to say that a 270 permits a lighter flywheel because the moving piston while the other is stationary supplies some flywheel effect. A lighter flywheel enhances acceleration.

[@billbright1755]

That Triumph twin sure looks sweet.

[@i_am_samar]

Wow, I have ridden GT650 twin, and engine feed back is too good. Thanks a ton

[@julieanddavidmyers6641]

Are there engine with both pistons firing at the same time on 360 crank?

[@tomswoodturningchannel482]

They fire at different times, on the 360 crank, every second stroke

[@anthonymoore4702]

Most of all, I liked your clear pronunciation.

[@karaagacalican]

Is it fair to say that 180* crank lay out seems like bicycle pedals but 270* lay out is like a horses running pattern (consider front legs as one unit and back ones another) ?

[@danielleclare2938]

Inline means front to back so in line with the wheels. The crankshaft orientation is your way of knowing the difference. Front to back = inline. Left to right = transverse. TRANSVERSE is what a parallel twin is. Same as the straight 4 cylinder bikes all are TRANSVERSE not inline. Everyone gets that wrong these days. FWD cars have transverse engines and RWD cars have inline configuration...most of the time. Anyway inline means front to back not in a row!!!

[@RenotSemaj]

When I heard that, I thought that's not right and stopped the video to check to see if anyone else saw the error. I'm not much of a fan of these machine generated narrations

[@KhoaLe-uc2ny]

good info, thank you

[@evanwilliams6352]

Inline refers to how the cylinders are aligned to each other. There is no orientation of an engine before it is installed. Transverse refers to how the engine is installed within a chassis. A Honda straight 4cyl is the same as a Nissan straight 4cyl, just that one is oriented differently in the chassis for FWD.

[@spritual_enlightenment]

Very good job to explain.

[@OSOFLHP]

Power vs torque I rode Norton for many years, now I ride Harley, both produce good amounts of torque, while I miss the power and handling of the Norton the comfort of the Harley makes it worth the trade,

[@YadugovindM]

I am a proud owner of the motorcycle showcased at 0:14. Proud Yamaha RX100 owner.

[@fredrutledge3628]

I owned a Triumph 360 degree (1973 Bonneville 750) and a Triumph 270 degree ( 2015 Speed twin 900) and the 270 was much more pleasant on the road.

[@MrJulianneave]

Might also have had something to do with 42 years of technical advancement...but yeah I dig the 270° crank too!

[@timhallas4275]

Both BMW and Moto Guzzi solved all these issues by making an "opposed" two cyl engine configuration. The pistons move in opposite directions as does the crank journals, thereby balancing the forces on the crankshaft. They can be fired at 360 or 180 degrees with very little vibration issues. These are the smoothest sounding and feeling twin cyl engines.

[@gustavmeyrink_2.0]

BMW uses Boxer flat twins meaning both pistons go 'up' or 'down' the cylinder at the same time while Moto Guzzi uses a simple 90deg V. Very different engines. The other possible version of a flat twin would be a 180deg V. The difference being that in a Boxer configuration each piston has its own crank pin while in a 180deg V the pistons share a crank pin ie one piston goes 'up' while the other goes 'down'.

[@garydavis2265]

Still have both pistons stopping at the same time plus it makes a super wide engine. Boxer twins are great motors but are not perfect,pick your poison.

[@zombabeger]

my bike is 360 and it doesnt have that much powet or top speed.. the sound is awesome though... it can go as fast as 120km/hr and it vibrating like crazy and also, there is no more room left to pull the throttle... the ride at normal speed is super smooth and comfy... i wonder how to make the 360 combust at the same time so it will be just like single cylinder bike? if there is a way i would like to try on my bike

[@cliffont]

Great explanatory video!

[@gregorolsavsky4661]

Totally excellent. Well xplaimed.. u r a grate teacher I have Yamaha Mt 07.. 270 degree crank

[@murraymarshall5865]

In line twin was generally used for a twin with the crank in line along rather than across the frame. Sunbeam S7 and S8 are examples.

[@aitchr8770]

The Trixie TRX850 better in every way than a 90 degree v! honestly. The 5 five head revs out in a way a duke never could and its not just the timing pulses that make it sound great, those 5 valve heads make a unique induction sound. It is addictive.

[@wolfganglenz7500]

Por eso yo amo mi TDM 850 4tx

[@larryvanputten4048]

Great video! At last I understand how it works!

[@sidneydawe9937]

My 1968 Honda cd175 Sloper twin has a 360 degree crank but there is only a little tingling that resonates through the handlebars. It does mean that only one set of contact breaker points is required so there is always a dead spark at TDC of the exhaust stroke.

[@chadkline4268]

Good video 😎👍 I'll take the 180. I wish boxers were used as an example too.

[@chrishart8548]

Boxer is a 360° crank

[@ginoasci]

My 2022 Triumph Scrambler 1200xc has the 270 degree configuration and sounds good and delivers plenty of power, but I prefer the high revving smooth inline fours.

[@the_undecidead]

I have a 180 degree twin engine bike. It sounds like a sewing machine but I love it to bits. :)

[@JCF69700--]

At 7:28 the Honda 650 Africa Twin has a V-twin engine

[@mechguy8459]

So nicely explained parallel twin engine ❤️

[@aungkaungmyat7247]

Yeah, very helpful.

[@alphajed7700]

This is why Suzuki's Crossplane Twin has Double Cross Balancer in their GSX-8S and V-Strom 800DE to reduce vibration, a first in the motorcycle industry to put such Double Balancer.

[@LS-uv9gg]

The CB400 mentioned in this video (and it's differently named variants) were 360* that had Dual Counter Rotating Balancers, starting in 1978. I had a 1980 CB400T Hawk, and an '82 CB450T Hawk. The Honda NC750 series has a 270* crank with Dual Counter Rotating Balance shafts, starting in 2014.

[@vincentregnaultdebouttemon1690]

So ninja 650 has 180° crankshaft? Same as z650 and versys 650?

[@manojkumarsalugu4077]

Explained in detail , 👌. Thank you

[@claudiosironi7591]

Remember. Honda Africa Twin had a V 52°engine !!!!! with cranks staggered at 72°. Fantastic technical stunt and practically no vibrations.

[@paulsparks8015]

Laverda made their Topped with 180 degree and 120 degree cranks. I have wondered if 90 degrees might have been way to go. The first mention I read of 90 degrees cranks was I bored out 872 cc Laverda twins.

[@Kdood_Rider]

Explained thoroughly and understood, thank you very much. 🙏🙏🙏

[@practicalplinking6133]

Both cylinders moving ??

[@royalenfieldcaferoots]

Nice 270° ! Excelent.

[@davidherrera2465]

Perfect Analisis 👉👍

[@mcfast52]

The Yamaha XS 650 did not have balance shafts, they vibrated a lot!

[@turbosteve84]

Ryan F9 claims the expensive-to-manufacture 285 degree crank is the best alternative. Currently, only KTM employs it and it's reflected in the price of the bike.

[@williammuir638]

Great explanation. 180 and 270 require more parts to reduce vibs. A low reving 360 in engines upto max of 750 cc is probably most sensible, as its cheaper to manufacture and simpler with less moving parts. Simple is reliable is economical is practical.

[@vicent436]

Less moving parts? A 360 would need more and more balance axes.

[@acorredorv]

@@vicent436 its really no different to 180 and 270, all of them need a balancer for higher displacements. The only real advantages the 360 twins had were for the simplicity of the ignition as they allowed wasted spark systems and the single carburetor.

[@karlavelo2482]

It's been tried, not reliable (Norton, Triumph, Royal Enfield) : mode self destruct engaged. Hence 650 max for a 360° parallel twin without balancers ...

[@650Max]

@@karlavelo2482 High comp 750cc big-bore and a lumpy cam is absolutely fine with a 360 crank, just make sure you've got accurate sparks and carbs balanced. Replacing the 45yo rubber mounts for handlebars and footpegs makes a difference as well.

[@windingdriveway]

@@karlavelo2482 I ride my 850 Commando all the time, it's great fun and with the Isolastics sorted vibes are minimal.

[@geraldselvey7687]

Was the Yamaha trx 850 the first mass produced 270?

[@antoniocarlosacsjr7128]

Love the 270°s too, but... the 360° 800cc Rotax of my 2012 F800R screams in sync with my heart... 😂

[@wanr5701]

270 degree crank is essentially half-crossplane design. Which makes me think; Is it possible to have inline four with 270 degree crank by putting two parallel twin with 270 crank alongside each other in the same arrangement?

[@Guillaume_F]

Do you know a motorbike equipped with a 250 cm3 engine at 270° ?

[@Big_DT]

Excellent video, thank you for the explanations.

[@emiliobcn1611]

I have a Honda CB 500 from 1993. Anybody knows which configuration is using ? Probably 180 °.

[@GbMuthu]

A bullet purchase is made from the heart not the head. It really is not a rational decision. 😅 Can't say the same about the continental GT twin though. Its 270° crankshaft angle means no dead centers or a seamless firing order.😍

[@jeffpiper7430]

have a couple of xs650 yams , 1 rephased to 277 and 1 original , the difference in vibration is amazing , havent ridden 270 conversion as a lot more expensive and complicated ,cant compare performance as the rephased motor has a lot done to it .. eg.. now 750cc

[@aungkaungmyat7247]

I love ❤ Mechanical Engineering.

[@amitkandir3344]

very informative .. thanks

[@IFILMcoolTHINGS]

I have a lifan straight twin it sounds sick🔥

[@JM_Tushe]

A great question I never asked myself, thank you.

[@gyandeepchauhan7411]

which engine generate more power

[@chrishart8548]

The power is not limited by the crank angle. It's bore, stroke, compression, throttle body size etc. Valve sizes they can all make race engine power and have 50 hour service intervals. And maybe a rebuild after each race.

[@uhtred7860]

A crossplane crank was so named because viewed from the end the crank pin formed a plus sign, or cross. I don't know how a 270 degree twin can be a "crossplane", unless of course its just marketing BS. My old 96 Yamaha TRX 850 had the same 270 crank as the modern twins and no mention of "crossplane" was mentioned. Same goes for the CP-3 triple, it should be a "Starplane" crank, because it forms a star shape, like a Mercedes emblem, not a "cross".

[@astrostrotch]

Tbf to Yamaha, they call the 270 twins "crossplane philosophy" which imo is fair enough as they exhibit the same benefits as a true crossplane 4. I had a TRX back in the day and it was a funky fun engine just like the 689 motor is now. Totally agree about the triples though, they are not crossplane at all.

[@LTLT900]

Yes starplane or y plane. Not crossplane

[@Gnerko123]

I figure it is because one of the crank pins crosses the plane of the other rather than lying in the same plane.

[@kasperkjrsgaard1447]

The inventor of the 270˚ crank, Phillip Irving called it “staggered crank”.

[@rocodux]

what I think is that I didn't understand a sht, but the video was very entertaining

[@DayvidSchricker]

Could you theoretically covert for example an 180 into a 360? Might be a dumb question but…

[@JensAddictions]

Interesting. Largely, if I twist the throttle and the bike goes vrooooom, I don't think about it too much!

[@agl1925]

@JensAddictions - sure, you twist and it goes vroom - but if you are a racer, understand the vid - you can extend the idea to 4cylinders and will choose a V-four to win your races (rather than an old-style flat 4 - which have problems balancing out the secondary forces).

[@Mike40M]

Early Honda CB 72 had a 180 degree crank. Later ones 360. Honda CB250 K4 has a 180 degree crank. The later CB250N has a 360 crank. Seems Honda had a problem figuring out what they preferred.

[@cobra7250]

My question is not directly associated with this topic. I hope you’ll bear with me. In order to remove some of the disadvantages of large right angle compared to the For centerline would there be any possible advantage to moving the cylinder bore off the centerline of the crankshaft?

[@cobra7250]

It should be “ large ROD angle”

[@cobra7250]

BORE centerline

[@mk1cortinatony395]

Yamaha have done this for yrs. It helps a little with efficiency as the piston is at TDC for a couple more degrees

[@lorenzorenzo3812]

Buon giorno Come posso avere la traduzione in italiano della spiegazione. Grazie

[@constantinosschinas4503]

Would be nice to have a noise comparison at the end.

[@Mr.6speed200]

I love mechanical+power+automobile + aerospace engineering

[@carlosbrites8201]

Very intersting video,thanks.

[@mateszarka1158]

V-twin if 2 cilinder, or boxer. The inline design is best for 4.

[@mondvlogph]

Im more of 180° Guy. I Like the Twin That Emit Sound like a JDM Car. On The Other Hand These 270° Also Caught my Attention as they Sound like the Modern Charger | Mustang & Camaro. Lastly wound be the V-Twin as in sounds like the 70s American Muscle

[@paulmullen24]

What about L Twin in my opinion at higher rpm the smother twin

[@wazzzappening4848]

The 270 degree Twin has the best power characteristics and sound. Also it's compactness is perfect for any application. Even in large capacity twins with a long strokes. The future of this format looks awesome. For the introduction of camless ultra compact head design. From Freevalve technology. Imagine a Super Tenere short stroke 1500 with ultimate computerised valve control. 190 HP @ 9000 RPM & 170 NM @ 5000 RPM conservatively achieverble. Programmable with any lift,duration and timing desired in conjunction with totally adjustable ignition and fuel timing and mapping? The BMW 1250 GS Adventurer and the Ducati V4 Multistrada along with the KTM 1290 Super Adventurer S would be put into prehistoric obsolescence overnight. One of these manufacturers will have to make this move sooner than later. Will it be the Europeans or the Japanese? 😊

[@cagr4249]

Oha - your technical explanations are wrong, surely the consequence of missing knowledge in engine construction. Except in a side-valve-design NO brand (neither European nor Japanese nor Martian... 🤣) would ever introduce freevalve-technology in a series engine. For racing oK, but for all over purposes impracticable - same situation as with electrically operated brake systems.

[@whoflungdung1487]

Can't go wrong with the sound of a 270 on the yamaha mt-07 such a sweat sound

[@こーけいい]

The Honda CB450 was available in two versions with 180° and 360° crankshaft angles. It seems that 180° was for export and 360° was for JDM.

[@marvicrodriguez6354]

Also the Honda 305, differences type 1 and type2 ?

[@mooglemy3813]

Your correct. The 180 was for export. The 360 was for domestic use. Ran into the 360s as they were imported by US mitary. Caused us probs for some repairs. Spark advancers were different in the two versions. Your the 1st person I recall to mention this. Good post.

[@PrimoStracciatella]

Not the CB450 but the 400. My first bike was a CB360, after that I had a 450 Nighthawk. Both had 180° cranks. Then I moved up to a XS650 and really liked the vibration of the engine.

[@zuppowert]

I like the boxer engine @ 3:54 :-)

[@RajuPatel-zs2im]

Gt650 is 360 or 270 firing angle?

[@josephkay7785]

RE Continental GT 650 is 270

[@alansharif9159]

_360* degree parallel twin is best, sounds like a inline 4 engine moreover the firing order is perfect_

[@bihunsup5077]

that mean 2 piston engine can be many profile sound. can be sound like 1 piston,2 piston,4 piston and v twin engine that why i love 2 piston motorcycle engine

[@fotisfotakis1623]

.the best video ever i see

[@calvinlondt3037]

I'm more of a V-twin rider, so if I had to ride an inline twin I'd pick the 270.

[@dwilt622]

Hondas Big bang death trap!! Rode many years & well riding the big bang flat out is indescribably exhilarating. It is also flat out dangerous for newbies. The problem was cornering on throttle, the tire would lose traction from the torque. Which was unsettling running carbs you would get use to it then atmosphere would change day 2 day n you'd get a lil surprise 😅. If it was fuel injected i would like to see if it helps. I remember one specific time I took it out after a lil 🌧 yea you can forget that. #Deathtrap

[@kd350]

Don't write off 180 deg cranks just yet. Of course all my two stroke twins are thusly set up. I'm assuming fans of two-seventies are running their engines mostly below ten grand rpm. My 2020 VersysX 300 however howls up to 13,000 and up above 8-9 rpm, the exhaust note is quite racy. The video neglects to mention that two seventies have more pumping loss vs. 180s. Perhaps an important factor in a motor that only squeezes out 16 ft/lbs of torque at 10k.

[@PhilbyFavourites]

Tedious but effective, I think I’ve sat too long in an Open University lecture……