I saw how much "safelights" cost, and realizing that they're not even pure red, realized they're a proper swindle. I used to do microelectronics and LED lighting as a hobby (still do, sort of). You can purchase red LEDs in bulk from China via ebay; you pay a little extra and you get a deeper, truer red. Anyway, for like $20 you can get 100+, and for like $10 you can get 25 or so . . .
You slip a watch battery in between the leads of the LED (be sure to mind polarity), and then use a small magnet to keep the battery in place. The magnet will also allow you to stick the new "safelight" anywhere in your darkroom where there's a metal surface. I personally put my lights on the chrome in my bathtub, as my bathroom is my darkroom. I bought some surplus LEDs awhile ago, which are rated at exactly 660nm. I can literally hold orthochromatic film or paper against the light and not have any fogging. I know it's harder to get "true red" like that, inexpensively, but the slightly oranger reds in the 640nm range are also very safe.
If you get tired of buying new watch batteries, like I did, you can buy a small breadboard at any electronics store (like Fry's), and a two-battery adapter set to power it (either AA or AAA, they're both the same voltage, AA just lasts longer).
