Do you gift away personal lights or do you buy lights specifically for gifts?

Simple question, you've got someone you want to give a light to, a friend, family member or boss/employee, do you give them one from your personal collection or do you buy one just to gift?
live-in family members don't count because your not really givin it away.

For the sake of clarity lets exclude birthday/Xmas/anniversary gifts, of course your not going to give them something used for a significant gift. Lets discuss only every-day "thanks for being in my life" gifts. I give away a lot of my outdated lights, I have been threw about every brand of single cell CR123 keychain lights trying to find the one that I liked best and now all of my friends are equipped with single cell CR123 keychain lights. I also give my mom a lot of my older lights that I don't ever use because for as long as I can remember she's been a flashaholic.

I feel like giving away one you have already used is a type of re-gifting, almost never a good idea.

I can only think of two exceptions at the moment. As an example, let's say a friend's car breaks down at night, and he/she realizes that they have no light with them. It would be ok to give them a personal light that you don't need, and just let them keep it. But this would not count as a birthday gift or anything like that...it would just be helping out a friend.

The other exception would be extremely high quality custom lights. Like fine watches or jewelry, they could be considered heirlooms, and gifting those to family or close friends who understand what they mean to you would also be a fantastic gift.

For run-of-the-mill gifts, though, you have to buy new. If you have lights to get rid of, sell them online, donate to a police department, or torture them to death for your own amusement (and those on CPF, I would hope.)

It seems like most of the gift lights I've given have been new and purchased for the purpose of being gifts. I've given a few away that i had replaced with something "better" but it was more like "hey man I don't want this anymore do you want it?"

I think we are talking about two different things:

1) Spontaneously gifting the light off of your keychain (for example) because someone happens to admire it. (ie: "Wow, that's a really nice little flashlight...")

2) Purchasing a light, and even gift-wrapping it, so that you can give it someone as a "real" gift.

Two different kinds of "gifts," in my opinion.

I don't buy crap and you really have to be a good friend before I give you a light. That being said I give away part of my personal collection when I gift a light.

It depends if the person has a specific need or requirement or if it is a general use that hides away in a bag.

I have given a Surefire E1B to my girlfriend because she really liked it and bought a Xeno G42 XM-L2 for a friend. He loves showing it off when going camping with he's family.

I have given away some old lights, Fenix PD10 twisty.

Mostly I gift away personal lights. I usually buy lights often enough that I either get tired/bored of certain ones and just gift away. When I do, they're usually in mint condition, and I'll put in new primaries. The last time I specifically bought a new light for someone was the 3 pack of basic head lamps at Costco. Wrapped them up for a relative's birthday. He thought the those lights were the cat's meow. One for in the home, the car, and garage...

I give lights from my collection, but they are mint. I've given a E2DL to my then GF. A 6P to a best friend. And LED Mag to my parents.

Current gf gifed me a Mercedes branded 100 LED light to go with my car.

James has got a really nice car!

I gift them all the time...all the men and most of the women in my family have a Fenix light from me

kelmo said:

James has got a really nice car!

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Thanks Kelly! It pales in comparison to your beautiful family though

I'm still unsure what light, if any to give my gf. She hasn't really expressed interest. She humors me more than anything.

jamesmtl514 said:

I'm still unsure what light, if any to give my gf. She hasn't really expressed interest. She humors me more than anything.

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My wife is the same, she just wasn't that into it like we are, I started out giving her a small pink L3 illumination L10.219 a few months ago (mothers day gift but I gave it early) now we've got a solarforce L2T out for pink powder coat. I was going to get her a surefire but she didnt want something that expensive yet. She has really started to rely on it now where as she use to rely on me.

Mikeg23 said:

It seems like most of the gift lights I've given have been new and purchased for the purpose of being gifts. I've given a few away that i had replaced with something "better" but it was more like "hey man I don't want this anymore do you want it?"

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That's how it usually goes for me as well. No point in keeping lights around I don't want anymore.

I buy to gift because 1) if its my light allready then I purchased it because I wanted it, I'm not going to give it away and 2) nobody wants a 2nd hand light, well maybe flashaholics but if your gifting I'm guessing they're not allready a flashaholic lol

Just bought my lady a purple Fenix E01 to act as a keyring. She was actually very pleased =)

I just bought 5 olight i3s's to give away as gifts to a few friends and fam members for no reason other than I got a really good price on them.

Rosoku Chikara said:

I think we are talking about two different things:

1) Spontaneously gifting the light off of your keychain (for example) because someone happens to admire it. (ie: "Wow, that's a really nice little flashlight...")

2) Purchasing a light, and even gift-wrapping it, so that you can give it someone as a "real" gift.

Two different kinds of "gifts," in my opinion.

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I do both of these.

kelmo said:

I don't buy crap and you really have to be a good friend before I give you a light. That being said I give away part of my personal collection when I gift a light.

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And this, as well. Same for knives, too.

MikeSalt said:

Just bought my lady a purple Fenix E01 to act as a keyring. She was actually very pleased =)

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A small pink or purple (or whatever her favorite color is) small keychain type light is a great way to get the misses into your hobby. Little AA/AAA keychain lights arnt usually considered nerdy so they'll start to carry it then after a while of having it there they'll start to rely on it and want something bigger/better and start to be greatfull for you being a flashaholic.
Thats how I got my wife started and now whenever I get a new light she wants her turn to play with it. Before if she needed a light around the house she would ask me for one, now that she has a few of her own lights (both stay in/clipped onto her purse) she has her favorite that she'll actually go and get when she needs one. She's also learning to use the right tool for the job and if she has a specific task a specific light would do better at she'll go and get that light, be it a thrower, or a HCRI light or whatever she needs. I've trained her well (DO NOT tell her I said that lol). All of it started when I gave her a little keychain light and she's never been left in the dark since.

Im still waiting on the perfect light for her to come along, small and pretty and most importantly the one she'll actually carry on her person all the time (like me with my ZL SC52). She has a pink L10 Nichia 219 that she loves the tint/HCRI aspect of and she also loves her pink Surefire but she only carrys them in her purse, one day I hope to get her setup with a light she'll actually EDC. It took me a lot of tries to get the right light for my EDC, and with her wanting her lights pink it costs even more (to search out pink lights or have non-pink ones powder coated). That's what I get for getting my wife I to the same thing as me (she already has a pink AR to match mine)

Oh great, as I'm typing this she just informed me she now wants a bigger purse lol.

Rosoku Chikara said:

I think we are talking about two different things:

1) Spontaneously gifting the light off of your keychain (for example) because someone happens to admire it. (ie: "Wow, that's a really nice little flashlight...")

2) Purchasing a light, and even gift-wrapping it, so that you can give it someone as a "real" gift.

Two different kinds of "gifts," in my opinion.

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+1.

Most of the lights I purchase as gifts for the average person, though, are the ones with the simplest of interfaces. Something everyone can use around the house or EDC-sized but won't likely be left in a drawer if they found it too complicated. Mostly these types of flashlights are stocking stuffers or housewarming gifts. But otherwise, for me, a flashlight is too generic a gift to give someone for e.g. birthdays or Christmas ... unless that person is a known enthusiast for tools or gadgets. It's like gifting your mom or wife with a vacuum cleaner for her birthday. :shakehead

However, for a fellow flashaholic, I'm glad to buy the best-quality ones coz I know the light will really be appreciated.