This thread will be slightly different than most of mine, in that it is about building a very simple yet efficient PCP for about $200.... You won't need any special tools, and there are only two things to purchase:

An Industry Brand QB79 Airgun
A Ninja 13CI/3000 psi tank with an SHP Pro Regulator

What you end up with is a gun that looks like this.... It weighs 6 lb. 10 oz. and balances right on the foregrip....



and shoots like this.... In fact twice that many shots on a full tank....



The average velocity while above the regulator setpoint was 609 fps with Crosman 14.3 gr. CPHP pellets, which works out to 11.8 FPE.... On a 3000 psi fill, it works out to 135 shots and refilling at 1100 psi.... for an efficiency of 0.95 FPE/CI....

What does it take to accomplish this great combination?.... Would you believe mount the tank on the gun, fill it with air and start shooting?.... First a little history.... The QB79 is the "tanker" version of the QB78, which was developed from the Crosman 160, and manufactured in China.... It is available for between $100-$120, and is intended to use a CO2 Paintball tank, although many people substitute Paintball HPA setups instead.... So what did I do that was different?.... Instead of the commonly available 13 CI / 3000 psi tanks that have a regulated output of 800-850 psi, I used Ninja Paintballs new SHP Pro version.... The "SHP" stands for "super high pressure" (advertised at 1100 psi) and the "Pro" refers to their "360* twist technology" which allows the tank to be rotated so that the fill nipple and gauge don't interfere with the barrel.... I recently reviewed the SHP Pro, which lists for $80 US, here.... http://www.canadianairguns.com/showthread.php?1095

OK, so the QB79 is designed for CO2, but we're running 1100 psi, what about safety?.... What people forget is that CO2, while having a nominal pressure of 850 psi at 70*F, can produce pressures as high as 1900 psi at 120*F.... At 90*F, it's about 1200 psi, and at 100*F about 1400.... and we don't hear of QB79's exploding on a hot day.... About all that happens is that when it gets hot, the velocity drops, because the hammer spring peaks out at about 1100-1200 psi.... Having said that, there are a couple of recommendations I have on the QB79, whether on HPA or on CO2....

Don't remove the action from the stock with gas in the gun.... There are two additional stock screws that thread into the tank block and provide an additional safety measure should the other screws yield....

Don't remove the breech with gas in the gun.... The valve is only secured with one screw, but sits against a steel block.... That steel block is secured on the bottom by the stock locating stud and on top by the flathead screw in the breech, located under the barrel.... ALL THREE SCREWS must be in place and tight before the gun is pressurized....

The Ninja SHP Pro regulator is equipped with two burst discs, one to protect the tank from overfilling, and the other to prevent the output pressure from rising about 1800 psi.... This is ideal for our purposes, as those pressures can be reached in a CO2 system, and in fact CO2 tanks are rated at 1800 psi.... As long as you don't disturb the 1.8K downstream burst disc, your QB79 should be just as safe as running on CO2, IMO.... I chose the SHP because of its 1100 psi output (my tanks actually measured at 1200).... Remember I mentioned earlier that the hammer spring in a QB peaks at about that pressure?.... That means that the gun should be shooting pretty efficiently without having to change it.... If you are only running 800-850 psi the hammer strike is actually too strong, and the gun will be wasting air, and may experence hammer bounce.... It still might get lots of shots, but clipping a coil of two off the hammer spring would improve the shot count even further....

Please note, I made NO modifications to the gun in any way.... I did disassemble the breech and deburr it and the bolt and the rear section of the main tube, and I polished up the trigger and hammer and installed a lighter trigger spring and 2-stage plunger.... but those are all fine-tuning details that anyone might do to a CO2 version and have nothing to do with the performance, only functioning and shooting enjoyment.... You have to slide out the barrel to rotate the tank to install it, as the gauge and fill fitting won't clear.... but that gives you the opportunity to deburr the forward section of the breech so it doesn't keep shredding the O-rings anyway....

I think this conbination of the QB79 and the Nnija SHP Pro setup is just about perfect as an introduction to PCPs.... The price is certainly right, and the platform can be modified to your heart's content.... The target style AR2079 version isn't a lot more money, and the conversion process is identical.... IMO, the QB79 and the Ninja SHP Pro go together like bread and butter.... and just in case you might be interested in spicing up that combo a bit, stay tuned as I have a couple of simple mods in order as well....

Bob