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I've been trying to get my 38 back on the road after dismantling it a few years ago. I finally have everything reassembled but after I've connected the first three terminals like so;
cowl battery + terminal to starter,
- cowl battery terminal to + engine bay battery terminal
and then when I attempt to connect the - engine bay battery (ground) terminal I get sparks & smoke from the starter/distributor area. I disconnected it immediately so I didnt get a good look. The ground cable is bolted to the battery tray as specified in the manual. The surface its bolted to is bare metal & the bolt is tight. The ground strap is tight from motor mount to engine block, the short slave cable is grounded to the front of the starter & long end to the starter terminal. The wiring harness power cable is on the starter terminal with the slave & cowl +. All 3 connections are tight. What the $&%...its very frustrating!
Coil maybe?

Starter switch is probably hot. Disconnect the three wires from the starter switch (battery plus, slave and # 4 from the voltage regulator). Bolt the three together and insulate the bare metal to prevent a short. Now connect the engine compartment (forward) battery negative cable to ground. Do you now get a spark?

As always, many thanks Wes. I'll try your recommendation in the a.m.
Steve

Okay, tried it again today bypassing the starter. Still getting the sparking but only at the neg battery terminal.

If you eliminated only the switch on the top of the starter and still get a spark then the source of the current draw is either the voltage regulator or the jeep's other electrical circuits. The next step is to isolate the voltage regulator by disconnecting wire #10 between the regulator and the first circuit breaker on early M38 or the regulator and the main switch on the late M38 and M38A1.

Thanks Wes. I followed your troubleshooting procedure using an old 24v BO fender bulb as a test light. The amp gauge was the problem. I replaced it with a spare and no more sparks.

I'd like to get in a "btw" comment as well:
My sincere thanks and appreciation for being so generous, patient & thorough in sharing with us the vast store of technical info & invaluable hands-on experience aquired over your lifetime. I for one, would have most likely given up on my M38 restoration years ago without your guidance & know how. I seriously understand & appreciate how much of your time goes into replying to questions, taking & posting photos, scans & all the vehicle specific websites you've created...and all at no cost to us! It's incredible really.
So, I say again...a very sincere thank you Mr. Knettle.

Hello Steve,

Glad it worked out OK for you. Thanks for the kind words.

Wes K