I ended up buying two of these Vivitar DF-120s for $29 each. Rubber tilt stand, camera mounting bracket if you want the flash as a enhancer for any digital camera, cross support threaded for standard tripod threads. Another nice design.

What makes this one a winner for anyone and worth the extra $10 is the flash isn't just a dumb slave flash, like the MS-1, it also has an exposure sensor. Better than that, it has a switch for different flash modes.

Test/Off, for some reason, they decided it was a feature to have the thing flash, every time you turn it off? Drives people nuts and wastes batteries.
1 = straight slave flash
2=one pre-flash delay (my Canon cameras, all of them)
3=two pre-flashes delay

Real guide number listed as 40.

I have a couple of Wein units that will make any hot shoe or cabled flash into a slave. The old one from film days, a HS, is just like the rest of the flashes, won't sync with some digital cameras. Then I picked up a new HSD last month and I can sync anything.

Phase two is almost complete. I have to get the flashes and twist lamps working together. Mostly just to prove I can do it. Then I can move on to the Big One. Stay tuned, you don't want to miss the next installment of "as the bulb turns."

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