"I now (thanks to all who educated me) know that I would only fully appreciate the full-frame body IF I was going to be making very large prints/posters etc., but if the max size was going to be 8X10, a crop sensor wasn't going to hinder the image vs. a full-frame."
Say what? FF benefits have little to do with print size. FF is exactly that. A full field of view. So if you use a 17-40 lens the camera is actually seeing 17-40. On the D300 which is a 1.5 crop if you use the same 17-40 lens the result is 25-60.
No matter which brand you buy if you think that you are going to buy any body at this juncture that will last you your camera shooting life time I think you are going to be sorely dissapointed in the future. No matter what you buy understand that you need to invest in glass. Bodies will come and go.
BTW The 5D with code PS1107QZIZF is just a hair over $2,000 at B&H. You might also want to see how many used D300's they have for sale Vs 5D's.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/397024/Understanding-Crop-Factors-and-Nikon-DX-Lenses
