I was one of those who gave up on 22lr and bought a $100 air rifle at Walmart.
I am astonished at the accuracy and hitting power in that rifle. The 22 pellets are definitely excellent for hunting small game.
I probably will be in the market for a more expensive one this year as it is really pleasant to shoot in the back yard anytime I want.
The new guns are NOT your father’s pellet guns from his childhood.
Depends on which air rifle you're talking about - and how old your dad is. ;-)
Take a look at the Benjamin Discovery and Marauder pre-charged pneumatic rifles. Those rifles are unmistakably souped-up revisions of the Crosman 160 and 180 CO2 rifles of the early '60s (Crosman, Benjamin and Sheridan are all under one roof now).
Crosman was most likely prodded into reviving that design by the Chinese, who began cloning the Crosman 160 a few years earlier (now sold by Beeman under the QB78 and QB79 models). Very effective pest-control and small-game hunting airguns - both the originals and more recent variants.