“I guess the only difference is that my directions said the connect the dead car black last”
And I think folks here agree with that, just not on the frame, on the engine block.
Anyone else recall the guy who was intentionally drawing a spark on his battery terminals to check its condition? When warned about the risk he shrugged it off saying nothing bad has happened yet. Being ignorant is one thing, continuing the practice after hearing what is possible, perhaps even likely given the frequency of occurance, borders on stupidity.
@Used,
I think you’re right, that I might have had it backwards. In any case, the last connection should be negative, and it should be made away from the battery to a grounded surface, whether that grounded surface be a part of the engine, a part of an accessory, like the alternator, or part of the car body that is bare metal and grounded. Evidently, the car body of the dead car wasn’t a good ground. In that case, look for another ground.
A further reason not to make the final jumper connection on a terminal of a dead battery is that the dead battery is more likely than the “good” battery to have created a volume of hydrogen gas through the conversion of the (spent) battery acid into hydrogen gas (and lead sulfate, which is inert, but it’s the hydrogen gas that explodes.)