I think it is neat (and can be fun) to make your own battery box. Cool to see folks making their own stuff.

For those of you that want Lithium power and want option beyond building your own box or buying Sullivan's, check out:

http://www.afineredgemfg.com

It is a great solution in that it is a Lithium solution with all those advantages, it is compact, and elegant when it comes time to charge. The downside is that you do need to buy the Makita charger, but you can get them on eBay or Amazon pretty cheaply, same as batteries.

Lars