A lead acid battery has a housing having a plurality of adjacently positioned battery plate receiving compartments. A cell of battery plates is positioned in each battery plate receiving compartment. Each cell has a plurality of positive plates, each having a positive lug, and a plurality of negative plates interleaved with the positive plates, each having a negative lug. A mold positioned on a top edge of each group of battery plates, and has two strap molding wells, each having a lead receiving space, a well base, and a plurality of lug receiving openings positioned in the well base. The positive lugs of the cell extend through the lug receiving openings in one of the strap molding wells, and the negative lugs of the cell extend through the lug receiving openings in the other strap molding well.