The 450NK is one of four bikes in CFMOTO?s lineup powered by a liquid-cooled 449cc parallel-Twin with dual counterbalancers and a lively 270-degree crank. (Photos by Kevin Wing)

As a husky guy who?s 6 feet tall and more than 200 lb, I?m not the target buyer for small bikes, but man, I sure love riding them. Don?t get me wrong; I love riding powerful bikes (like the 190-hp KTM 1390 Super Duke R Evo I track-tested in Spain) and big bikes (like the Harley-Davidson Glides I recently rode on a nine-day, 4,200-mile tour through four states), but they require a level of respect and seriousness that I?m not always in the mood for. Sometimes I just wanna have fun.

The CFMOTO 450NK has carefree written all over it. It weighs just 364 lb, makes 50 hp at the crank, and has nothing to figure out ? just hop on and ride. That?s not to say the 450NK is a toy or just a playbike. While it?s certainly slender between the knees and is easy to toss through a set of tight turns, it doesn?t feel diminutive, nor does it have a cramped cockpit. Snug, perhaps, but not cramped. The positions of the upright handlebar and footpegs are sensible, and the sculpted shape of the tank allows the rider to comfortably wrap around it, giving the sense of sitting in rather than on the bike.
Powering the 450NK is a liquid-cooled 449cc parallel-Twin that?s a workhorse in CFMOTO?s lineup. The same engine is found in the 450SS sportbike, the Ibex 450 adventure bike I recently tested, and the forthcomi...