Strobe for Nikon F80 with future digital compatability?

Hi Gurus!

I'm trying to wade my way through specifications and recommendations. :?

I have a collection of Nikon film equipment (F80, 18-35, 105 macro) and would like to get a Nikon D70 some day. At the moment I'm planning on getting a F80/N80 housing/port (probably Ikelite at this stage) and also a strobe.

I was wondering about the kit that B&H offer (IKS5067288) with a Ikelite 3968.43 Substrobe 50 (Orange) Photocase Kit with #6728.8 Housing for Nikon F80 for a little over US$1000.

Or, would an Ike DS50 be a good choice for future compatibility with a D70,

or would you recommend something different.

I'm very confused... :roll:

I would prefer to buy from Melbourne, Australia, but I'm not I could approach the prices offered in NY. What is local Ikelite support like?

I would like to get a D70 right now, but my girlfriend tells me that good things only come to people who wait

I'm open to any suggestions people have.

Thanks very much for your help.

A good choice for a strobe would one that has a goodly amount of manual power adjustments. I would look at: Ikelite DS125, Inon Z220, Sea and Sea YS90DX

Cheers

James

Ah, Melbourne, Australia. Was my home until I sort of got stuck in the middle of the desert on the other side of the country...

Anyway - Australian supplier/distributer of the Ikelite strobe would be Cape Byron Imports. You could try checking prices with them. I generally import my gear from B&H, but obviously support is a bit of an issue when your gear doesn't work.

Well in case someone else reading this has a similar question, I'll post my results. In the end I decided to purchase an Ikelite housing from Cape Byron Imports because after GST and customs duties (carefully read the customs website - they charge 5% in addition to GST), it wasn't going to be much cheaper to buy from B&H.

The housing is great and I would recommend it, although it is a bit bulkier than I had imagined. All the buttons and dials work well and for the money it is not to bad at all.

For the strobe I picked up a Nikonos SB105 from KEH because second-hand prices in Australia are insane (US$600-700). I used the standard Nikonos arms for a couple of dives before I realised I needed ball arms and purchased a second hand Ikelite set from KEH. Strobe is great. I run it off NiMHs and it works a charm.

I plan to purchase an Ikelite DS125 in the future as I imagine it will be compatible with the D70's iTTL. I wish Ikelite made a smaller one though! I haven't yet got a D70 as I'm holding out to see if they release a D80 around Christmas and I'm happy puddling along with my F80.

Hopefully this info will be of use to someone.