  The in-plane $\rho_{ab}(H)$ and the out-of-plane $\rho_c(H)$
magneto-transport in magnetic fields up to 28 T has been investigated in a
series of high quality, single crystal, hole-doped La-free Bi2201 cuprates for
a wide doping range and over a wide range of temperatures down to 40 mK. With
decreasing hole concentration going from the overdoped (p=0.2) to the
underdoped (p=0.12) regimes, a crossover from a metallic to and insulating
behavior of $\rho_{ab}(T)$ is observed in the low temperature normal state,
resulting in a disorder induced metal insulator transition. In the zero
temperature limit, the normal state ratio $\rho_c(H)/\rho_{ab}(H)$ of the
heavily underdoped samples in pure Bi2201 shows an anisotropic 3D behavior, in
striking contrast with that observed in La-doped Bi2201 and LSCO systems. Our
data strongly support that that the negative out-of-plane magnetoresistance is
largely governed by interlayer conduction of quasiparticles in the
superconducting state, accompanied by a small contribution of normal state
transport associated with the field dependent pseudogap. Both in the optimal
and overdoped regimes, the semiconducting behavior of $\rho_c(H)$ persists even
for magnetic fields above the pseudogap closing field $H_{pg}$. The method
suggested by Shibauchi \textit{et al.} (Phys. Rev. Lett. \textbf{86}, 5763,
(2001)) for evaluating $H_{pg}$ is unsuccessful for both under- and overdoped
Bi2201 samples. Our findings suggest that the normal state pseudogap is not
always a precursor of superconductivity.
