To follow up on my own post. I had the sputtering problem again, but this time I knew it wasn't water. A buddy suggested an electrical issue before. I wiggled the plug leads and the power came back.
What I am thinking is the bike gets hot, expands and leads loosen. Vibrations cause the loose lead to disconnect and thus loss of power... I am no mechanic and new to bikes. Will replace the plugs, tighten up and keep you posted.
Sorry to OP, I didn't mean the "original post". My problem sound similar and I'm trying to go through the basics too..
That said, the Plugs needed replacing, but were not the root cause. So Not water and not Plugs. I rode to Wasaga last night, about 45 Miles in the sputtering came back. I checked the plugs were still tight, they were. I filled up and issue got better. Not 100% gone but enough to get me from Innisville to Wasaga and back to TO.
So a half tank of gas and a hot engine I see the sputtering issue. Full tank, less and cold/warm engine less too....
What I've done so far:
Oil change
Air Filter
Fuel Filter
Keep Gas topped overnight(minimize condensation)
Plugs
....
Thinking Fuel pump as RockerGuy suggested or maybe old wiring.
Any ideas on how to test either without replacing parts trial and error fashion?