John,
Did you ever locate a battery holder? I, too, am looking for one for the loaner/backup unit for our club's radio room.

Last week a club member was given a pristine FT 11 by one of his neighbors, and Jeff donated it to the club. Remarkably, the nicad pack works like new. Included is the car window mount/charger, the 12-volt adapter, and the nicad wall wart, but no AA pack. Sigh. I programmed it with the local area RACES and private repeaters, plus most of the regional public service freqs. But for that incomprehensible squelch control, I like it better than my FT-10. Lighting for keypad and display is much better, for one thing. Also, that convenient BNC connector is sooo nice.
73, Steve