Fired Up!

In shopping for lugs I came across a conversion check list at www.EVParts.com. It says one ought to test the motor and driveline on 12volts before you get too far. Makes sense - If things don't mate up correctly and you wait until the car is done before you try it out, you'll be doing a lot of disassembly.
I jacked up the rear end, double checked the bricks blocking the front wheels, put it in neutral and used a couple of jumper cables to connect the terminals of the motor together and the motor to a single battery.
I tried to take a short movie of it to post, but the camera wasn't behaving.
There was a snap, a few sparks, a whiff of ozone and the motor lept to life!
It accelerated smoothly - no wobbles or vibration.
Good news.
Next I put it in 5th (don't want it going very fast if it falls off the jack) and tried it again. This was a little scarier, but with a zap the motor spun up again and I could see the rear wheels spinning in the proper direction.
Not bad.
I thought about testing the clutch next, but think I'll wait for someone else to help with the battery.