Beware those that don’t remember the setting they were on, and won’t go back to the first (low, or high) — instead each time you turn them off and later turn them on, they’re on the “next” setting.
When my son was in the scouts we got them Mini Maglites. Nothing goes together much better than BSA and Maglites. Two great American traditions. Shame you can't touch the LED minis nowadays for $10 or less. :(
Sipiks are great, but bulky. There’s a million different knockoffs, so be sure to get a good one.
The lights werner linked seem like a better option.
I’ve got a solarforce Z2 in the mail which I’ve heard good things about, but its a little over budget at $17. Same price for the X2.
Take a look at this group buy if you can go with AAAs.
or NiMH rechargeables (if a charger is available, maybe exchange charged for discharged cells to teach the habit of not throwing them away)
But don’t use alkaline cells (they will leak, just because they last so long — I’ve had LED flashlights that were still plenty bright after the alkaline cell inside had already gotten so weak it corroded, unlike the old incandescents that got dim while the cell was still in good condition)
And it should go without saying, don’t give them lithium-ion cells (not safe for youngsters, because the worst case of “let’s see what will happen if …” isn’t acceptable).
The issue with purchasing budget lights from a Chinese vendor as gifts is that sometimes they arrive DOA .So then you have to order more and wait 2-3-4 more weeks or someone goes without or I guess you could order a few extras.
I'd go for the sk68 1mode (clone). From the above mentioned options they are the cheapest, have the least issues (always had to 'repair' C3's upon arrival, and they had the tail cap covers popping out), the zooming is huge fun for kids, you drop them, you throw with them and they still work, and they come in fun colours! (and they are optically better than the thin zoomie above, but that would be a non- issue for kids). I think the bigger size is actually an advantage for kids: easier to find among their garbage (I assume here that an american scout is also just a kid, or do I underestimate them? ;-) )
I 100% concur with the SS C3. One of my all time favorite budget rigs. It is built like a tank! Only issue I have seen with them are cold solder joint. But…that can be a issue with all lights. lol I also ordered glow buttons and have some spares. If you want, you can feed them 14500’s and they can handle it for brief jaunts.
The light JohnnyMac suggested has great output & decent build, but it chews through bats like candy. I have 3 of them. 2 have battery drain issues. They will soak them dry in a weak on the shelf. Curious if others have experienced the same??
I also would suggest when you order if its in the budget to buy 2 extra lights. Just in case one is DOA.
Although I suggested the C3,
as djozz suggests I actually would prefer to give away coloured SK68s to kids,
in fact recently bought 6 for that purpose.
