Motorcycle Repair: 1973 Honda 450, air fuel ratio, backyard mechanic

Question
My brother gave me a 1973 Honda 450. It had been sitting for years in his shed. The last time he started it, it ran fine. When i got it, it wouldn`t start. I drained the gas and it started but ran rough. Not knowing alot about carbs i took it to a backyard mechanic, got new tires, battery plugs, carbs cleaned out. I drove it for a about a week ran fairly well. One cylinder started to heat up and there was some foaming oil dripping. Havent been able to get it started since. Want to get it running this spring as i have put money into the bike, its been sitting for about three years now. Is it possible a valve was stuck and if so what now. Is it expensive to fix? Any thoughts on this would be greatly appreciated.

Answer
Keith, I'm afraid you have to start over. You need to check the compression.  If the engine got too hot it could burn a hole in a piston.  Next you'll probably have to clean out the carbs again.  It's very important you get the floats set right or the engine run lean or rich.  Also you need to develop a habit of turning off the fuel petcock every time you park the bike.  Those carbs will leak small amounts of fuel into the cylinders over time and increase the oil level in the crankcase. When you ride the bike it will foam the oil and cause an increase in blow by.

Do the plugs spark when you crank the engine? The engine needs spark, compression and the right air fuel ratio to start and run.  You'll need to figure out which one is not right.

Regards
Rich