Heard from Ed and CT today.

Ed from BigEd's Custom Airgun Parts left me this message that has given me renewed interest in the B50 from BAM.

Hi Andrew
I have always said that the B-50 was a good gun.  With a little lovin', it can become a real nice gun.  It's Chinese heritage caused concern because of the quality issues on previous Chinese guns.  From the B-50 on, the quality has gotten better.
The Marauder has some features that the B-50 don't have, yet.  In just shooting ability and accuracy, the re-crowned B-50 should be able to hold its own.  With a Walther barrel, the game changes, and then I give the edge to the B-50.  The Marauder still has the multi-shot magazine, and a shroud, but that may not be an advantage much longer.
I still haven't received the prototype Breech yet, I'm waiting for it to arrive to see if it needs any last minute tweaks before they start rolling out.
I have no idea of why it cost $1600 for a fill setup.  The scuba tank should have only been about $300 new, and a high-dollar fill station might cost $150.  A brand new Carbon Fiber tank is under $700, so his $1600 is just a bit high.
Ed

Another Great email that I received this week was from  CT at Varmint Air 

Hi Andy,
Thanks, I'm glad you like my blog.
Sorry, I'm not at all familiar with the B40. I prefer a good quality .22 caliber PCP for hunting ground squirrels and prairie dogs at the longer ranges. Say 50 yards on out to 100 yards.
I use my .20 cal R9, and .20 HW 97 out to about 60 yards. If I know the area I'm hunting in will offer a lot of shots beyond that, I will usually hunt with a .22 cal PCP.
I like my springers, but my Pcp's are in a different class power wise. My most powerful springer generates about 14 foot pounds of energy at the muzzle, and most of my PCP's are about double that a 28 to 30 fpe.
For long range hunting, I just prefer to use a .22 cal PCP. More power, much flatter trajectory than my springers at the longer ranges, and the heavy .22 cal pellets buck the wind better.
I don't use a lot of power in my hunting scopes. I have variables, but have them all set at 8X. Some guys like 10X to 12X or more, but in the field, 8X works well for me.
Unlike springers, PCP's are not hard on scopes. I use a lot of Bushnell Legend 5x15x40mm variables, with the mildot reticles. They work well on a springer or PCP.
I also have some Bushnell 3200's and several MTC Viper's that I use on various PCP's.
A lot has to do with what you ultimately want to use your gun for. Lots of choices. So many that it can get quite confusing at times.
Have a great weekend. CT