Thanks all for the advice and input. Was out the past few days buzzing up some down trees to get ready for some trail rides.

I pulled the plug and pipe before I left hoping that a few days would allow for the the gas to evaporate. Fingers crossed that did the trick. Will drop a line tomorrow to let you all know where I'm at.

All this nice weather and no vrrmmm vrrmmm makes jack a dull boy.

You mean like hanging from a tree in case it doesn't work out?
Actually, not so funny. Good luck!

Well after three days of letting the bike test I put the spark plug back in, turned the gas on thumbed the choke. Got a murmur then turned choke off. She fired right up on the next kick. Gave her little throttle pulses and then it died around 3,500rpms.

I then killed the gas to make sure I didn’t flood the engine again. Kicked her again and got her reving until she sputtered out.

Happy to hear her purr again, but still a ways off to getting her reliable enough to ride.

I am now having issues with getting her started again. I’ve tried choke off, open throttle and kicking with no luck. Choke off, closed throttle and kicking, no luck.

Advice and wisdom are welcomed. And no, this won’t have me hanging from a tree.

I still think that you should at least try one of the suggestions to "manually" remove any fluids sitting in the bottom of the engine.

Will attempt the third 2nd/3rd gear hill ride tomorrow.

Checked the transmission fluid and couldn't detect any gas in it. I keep going back to the carb and am wondering if my needle and seat are actually sitting flush. Maybe it's time for a new carb, but this one only has ~3,200m.

I've seen some folks mention timing and points... could this potentially be part of the issue?

Took all your advice and pushed her up a hill. Spark plug out and ignition off - kicked her in 3rd and away we went. Did that three or four times while the neighbors gave me awkward looks. Went back into the shop and gave her a new spark plug. Choke and gas on and she fired right up on the second kick and ran for about twenty seconds before sputtering out. Turned the choke off and kicked her again with success, but couldn't keep her alive for long. Fuel delivery is good, but now I'm thinking may be clogged jet.. pilot maybe?

Will pull the carb apart again and blow out all the tiny ports.

Rainy days here in OR and quarantine make for fun times in the shop. Appreciate all the help!

This sounds like fuel starvation, like the float bowl has time to fill while you roll 'er back up the hill, or you kick her over, but then while it's running and wanting more fuel, it's not getting enough. The bowl empties faster than it can fill. Check the flow of gas through the petcock and down into the carb, and then another thing to check is, does my gas cap vent work? Open the gas cap and see if that affects the flow of fuel.

I don't believe it is fuel starvation as I have checked the drain valve on the carburetor occasionally and a steady stream of gas pours out. Flow of gas through petcock and filter is good as well.

She RUNS! well at least for a moment or two and then sputters out. Engine dies around 3,500 rpms whether the choke is on or off. I no longer am having fuel leaking out the exhaust though and the engine is no longer flooded. Thanks for the tips all.

However, I'm back at it with the carburetor. All passages are clear and have been blown out, floats are good and the arm level appears to be correct. I've tried adjusting the needle positions, but that has made little improvements.

Currently considering replacing the carburetor with a new model with a rubber intake boot. Has anyone done this?

My other thought is to completely replace all internals of my current carburetor. Does anyone sell a complete kit for the vm26sh carb?