SpudFiles

Are there any differences between the two types?
More Power, Better Flow, Reliability, ease of modification?

I'm in the process of building a cannon with a 2" sprinkler valve and I've noticed the two types selling around the same price.

The inline style appears to be the most common style among the valves ~1".
Where as the 90 degree starts to appear with the larger bore valves 2"+.

The 90 Degree style.

Inline

You will get better flow from using the 90 degree setup. Inline valves have some extra twists and turns that the large sprinkler valves (2" and larger) minimize by offering two different configurations: the globe configuration (inline) and the angle configuration (90 degree).

You can see the difference in flow coefficients of the two configurations here:

http://www.toro.com/irrigation/com/valv ... 220_gb.pdf

I was wondering if one brand is easier to modify or better performance.
Such as Irritrol, Toro, Hunter, Rainbird.

Is it worth the extra effort to attach a 3/4 sprinkler valve to pilot the 2" valve? Or would a simple 1/2in ball valve work just as well.

I've only modified Toro and Rainbird valves before. They're really all about the same once you've modified a few. With Toro valves, I remember there being a few extra holes that needed epoxy, but it was nothing major.

For the 3" Toro valves that I have, I used a 3/4" sprinkler valve to pilot them, but I'm sure a 1/2" ball valve would work too.. It'd be cheaper, that's for sure.

the 1" hunter SRV valve modds really nicely it has a guide for the spring (spring sits on the ouside) which happens to be almost the perfect size for the hole for 1/4 hose barb.