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Not all 600cc or even larger displacement bikes are created equal, many four cylinder machines that are sold as 'race replica' bikes are basically street legal race bikes, they produce upwards of 100 horsepower and have powerband characteristics that are not well suited to casual street riding, in low rev's they might be tame enough but when they reach optimum performance rev's the front wheel comes up easy in the first three gears and third can pull 100+ mph. easy. By comparison a Moto Guzzi Cafe Classic has a 744cc twin cylinder engine, puts out a maximum 50 horsepower and it's torque peak is reached at 3600 rpm.
For a quick and dirty way to glance at a bike and know what you are getting into don't pay attention to the cc's, look at the front brakes! If it has a single disk front brake, it's either a lightweight or lower performing machine, if it has huge twin discs up front, they are there for one of two reasons, it's either a very heavy bike or super fast crotch rocket.
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