I exported the private key by calling dumpprivkey <addressHeSentTo>, the went to a BTC client and did importprivkey <key>. The BTC client said something like "import failed". Any ideas? Will Electrum work better than bitcoind for this?
You can't import a privkey unless the wallet is unlocked.
What was the format of the privkey? Don't post it here for obivous reasons. If you are unsure of the format just report what is the first digit and length of the key.
Also rule #1 which applies to any technical support situation. The error message was something like .... is useless. Copy and paste the exact error mesage.