which would rev faster (Page 2/2) Patrick DEC 21, 12:42 AM quote Originally posted by maryjane: There just was no where to hide. Pieces (and HOT Oil) flew everywhere. ... BingB DEC 21, 10:29 PM quote Originally posted by Hank is Here: There are too many variables undefined I have decided this is the answer. I was just thinking of the weight of the pistons and all the rotational mass, but a 2.4 with a shorter stroke and wider bore is going to rev faster. BingB DEC 21, 10:32 PM quote Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: For B... to achieve a higher engine top speed (redline), it largely has to do with engine balance. An inline 6 cyl engine... all things being the same as the 4 cyl, will have a better balance due to the mass being more equally distributed across the crank. In an L configuration, generally pistons are matched in pairs of 2. That means two go up, two go down. In a 6 cyl engine, you have two up, two down, and two in the middle... which helps distribute the load across the crank. . I have heard before about an inline six being more balanced but I never understood why. I just thought they would be three up and three down ray b DEC 23, 09:51 AM 6 has a natural balance 4 vibrates and higher RPM needs balance shafts 8 are better but 12 is the smoothest a 6 will live longer then a 4 and rev higher no load quick RPM is useless unless under load can be tricked with thing like a super lite flywheel a 4 has less parts to rub is cheaper so can get better milage Patrick DEC 23, 05:27 PM Ray, having said all that... which would rev faster? Zeb DEC 25, 01:58 PM All else is never equal in this comparison. That being said, same head design, bore/stroke ratio, the six will have smaller lighter pistons and a shorter stroke. Smaller bore mean smaller lighter valves. All adds up to more revs, quicker. More pistons mean more piston area for combustion to act on. Means more power to rev quicker. I'd say the 6 would win by a significant amount. In any racing series, they always use the maximum amount of cylinders. Rayb is correct, though. 12 cylinders is a practical maximum, beyond that the returns are cancelled by the extra weight.