Motorcycle Repair: Starting after a spill, 1984 honda nighthawk, wink wink nudge nudge

Question
Hi Chris:   You do sound impressive.
I have a 1984 Honda Nighthawk 450
I dropped the bike on the right side and spilled a lot of gas - but there is still gas in the tank.
The bike was just certified and usually starts right up.  
It has not started since, although there is battery power.
Could it be just spark plugs or would the spill have messed up something else ?
Diane  

Answer
Hi Diane.

WOW!  Usually it's only my wife that calls me impressive. (wink, wink, nudge, nudge, cheesy grin)

I cannot think of any reason that the bike should suddenly not run after a simple spill (I assumed that it was dropped at a standstill and was not a lay-down).  Normally, they take a bit of time to fire up again (about half a minute or so of turning it over), but they do start up again.

Check to make sure that there are no accident related shorts in the ignition wires, that the plugs didn't jar loose, the ignition wires are making good contact to the plugs.  Also check the battery with a hygrometer as well as make sure that the fluid levels in the battery are correct.

If all of those are good, then the bike should (in theory) start up.

Let me know what you find.
Good luck and ride safe.
FALCON