Vacuum hose leak or float valve??

I have recently been mucking about trying to figure out why my bike wants to start, run a little and then runs rough, and dies. At first i thought maybe it was the alternator brushes worn out, i pulled the cover last night and they look fine at first glance.... however i did not take them out to measure only visual inspections, i have read here before that it says that they should be 10mm min, is that from the holders or from the etched line, looks like it is about 4-5mm longer than the line, so my guesstimate tells me that they should be fine......

possibility #2 - floats not seating well and engine floods, which i am guessing may also make the bike feel jumpy, hesitant at start off....
my father in-law also made the comment that if there are leaks in the vacuum hose it may not be sucking properly????? can someone verify that????

 

Your father-in-law was most likely referring to the vacuum operated petcock, which if not getting its vacuum signal will not dispense fuel correctly.

Float levels too low or too high can cause all sorts of problems depending on which condition exists.