Tell this to the Anchutz shooters. I suppose this is why I don't own an expensive air rifle. I wouldn't even consider owning a rifle without iron sights.
No guilt required. I'm sure you learned this from professional shooters and Olympic shooters who all do the same thing. Find a batch number that goes straight and buy them out.
There are paints that will turn rust into a zinc protective coating. There are phosphorous based paints that work in a similar way. The thing to do is strip the paint and do it all at once rather than just when the rust pops up somewhere else.