Years ago when i was a kid & mowing lawns, my father would always teach me to let the mower stop by turning off the fuel and just let it die by fuel starvation. This kept the carbs clean he said, so next time you start it up, it fires right up.
Having this in my mind all these years continues this habit on the sohc. About 500 metres from home, I turn off the tap & the bike usually just starts to die off as i'm in the driveway about to turn it off and park it.
Different machines have different physical configurations.
Most carbs have their own local fuel storage (float bowl). The carb uses this supply to feed the engine. Some carbs do suck the fuel out of the carb from the bottom of the bowl. The SOHC4 carbs do this only during 1/3 to full throttle positions (main jet supply). The pilot jet sucks fuel not from the bottom, but about 1/3 of the way up from the bottom (most likely to evade sediment). Therefore, during a fuel exhaustion event, the pilot circuit starves first, which generally kills the engine, as it relies on this feed supply during idle, leaving the bowl about 1/3 full.
If you hold the throttle at 1/2 position and the engine is racing high enough, it may well starve the supply at the bottom of the bowl(s) as well. But normally, the engine simply cannot run the SOHC4 bowls totally dry. That is why bowl drains are far far more effective at removing all gas residue from the carbs.
