ok guys, just wanted to report in here that this weekend i tried a strobe set up again...just to try and figure some things out.
this time i hooked up the sync directly into the lens with a pocket wizard instead of directly into the hotshoe. I found that it did not fire the strobe. However when trying a different lens, it went off fine....which leads me to believe it's been an issue with the lens all this time? my question is , back to my original post when firing with the hotshoe the strobe went off which is why i was confused as to how underexposed it all was...now i know this about the lens sync do you think this is why?? if the sync port in the lens is busted will it also mean it will effect the hotshoe?