Diana 54 and a good scope.
It is practically recoilless and is the only quality springer I know of which can easily develop at least the lower end of the power where .22 is most effective and is still shootable.
Id get an HW77K/97 in .177
Or an R9/HW95 in .177 if the weight of the others scares you off.
I think the Weihrauchs have better barrels in .177 from my experience.
Since you specified .22, I'd be on the lookout for a nice Beeman R1. They come up for sale from time to time or put a WTB ad out there.
Very well built guns with the Rekord trigger. Gowdy stock is much nicer than the HW80 equivalent. Has enough power to shoot .22 pretty flat (18-19 fpe). Responds well to a tune, up or down. Has a spring not a gas strut so spares available from JM. Classic rifles.
Get an HW77. They have good open sights in case you ever want to go that route. As a hunter, they're a very nice choice.
Of course an R9 is a bit lighter and has been the go-to rifle for legions of airgunners who hunt.
.177 R9 or another HW30 in .177. HW guns give you imo everything you could ask for in a quality air rifle. Maybe add a little and pick up the new FWB Sport as Im a fan of the older sporter models.
22 Diana 460 Magnum w/TO6 trigger, tuned by John in PA, for $300 on AA Classifieds, being sold by a reputable seller that I've actually done business with.
That would leave enough coin for a nice scope, or you could pay your cable bill ha ha -
Vines
The longer one's are harder to shoot in the field in my opinion. RWS 48 is a great gun and can be tuned easily. The 54 is the same but heavier but still compact. I like HW's and have an HW85 that is shooting about 17.5 foot pounds in 22. I was thinking about switching out the Maccari spring and put in a Vortek Kit and see if it can hit 18.5 to 19 with their new seal. I get side tracked from time to time with pcp's but always come back to springers. Now you have made me want to get another one. lol
Well to be different... I am very happy with my gamos I have and have tuned. Especially my CFR, it’s outside the usual line up yet still shoots under .25 with regularity at 35 and not much larger at 50. Having said that... I’d give a gamo swarm gen 2 a try. Maybe even a magnum. I really would. Would I stare at a picture of a 48 and 54 side levers and cry myself to sleep after? Probably. But for hunting a break barrel is really more suited to the job... if we narrow it down to break barrels which is logical then it becomes a short list comprised of everything mentioned above with the addition of some gamo models. I think people buy Benjamin or other low cost mass market break barrels and think everything in that price range sucks that bad, nope, gamos usually shoot well with jsb Exacts and HN FTTs. They’re just in no way shape or form classy. At all.
No argument from me. I've shot gas ram guns and liked them. Beeman RX2 comes to mind. Like springs too though and I guess I'm old fashioned. I like the lower cost of replacing a spring. Guess that makes me cheap too!
@intenseaty Yes, this. The Walther LGV is my best heavy springer, hands down. I think it hasn't been around enough decades to attract the cult following, but it should.
If it was me I would get a tried and true hw95 with open sights. Because it's all around versatile accurate enough to use and feel targeted good enough for hunting it's lightweight, it's easy to work on, and the money you have left over you can buy yourself a scope or some pallets or a kit from air rifle headquarters.