I shorted out the battery while tightening down the cables and now I get nothing at the ignition. I've looked at the fuses in the brown box located above the clutch pedal and they are all good. Battery tests at 12.8 volts. What could this be???

Sounds like you popped the big Maxi fuse next to the battery,
should be like a 60 Amp, or a 50 but check there

Wild

I don't see any fuses next to the battery. This is an 86 samurai. Am I missing them?

Cool side draft carb setup. Sorry I was thinking of the cover by my battery,
there must be a spot where the power from the battery goes, look there,
should be a smaller wire, and that's what supplies the power for the inside
of the truck, including the starting circuit

Wild

Thanks. The small positive wire from the battery was spliced 2 times and one of them came loose.

The side draft carb was running great for the first day but now I can't get it to do more than sputter and die. The saga continues.

Don't get me started on carbs..... they drive me nuts!

What kind of carb is that?

You might want to check the fuel pressure, and fix that stick that
you have put into one of those the fuel lines  

Wild

What kind of carb is that?
Wild

Surely only a Harley would have an eagle on the top cover.

I'd check for air leaks where the adapter bolts to the manifold. You may need some kind of heater on that adapter come the winter, that kind of adapter is notorious for carb icing.

what year is your samurai?

Harley was my first thought but not having one to look at, or knowing
anyone with a Harley I didn't know for sure

What kind of carb is that?

You might want to check the fuel pressure, and fix that stick that
you have put into one of those the fuel lines  

Wild

Its a 40mm CV carb from a Harley. Picked it up on ebay for $65.

Is there a way to test the fuel pressure to get exact numbers? I had a filter on it that has a bypass to keep fual pressure at 3 psi.
The stick is plugging a vacuum line that is no longer needed. I will replace it with a cap after I figure out why its not starting. The first day with the carb it ran great, now it just sputters.

Don't get me started on carbs..... they drive me nuts!

That's why I went with a 1.6 8 valve TBI.