Daystate Huntsman Regal HR Review/Hunt

Several weeks ago I received a Daystate Huntsman Regal HR in .22 caliber courtesy of Airguns Of Arizona. The Huntsman model has been around for years, but has recently been modernized by the addition of a HUMA regulator. The Regal combines all the elements of a classic, English sporting PCP air rifle. Beautifully shaped walnut stock cradles a solidly engineered and lightweight mechanical power plant, to perfectly mimic the feel and handling of a traditional hunting rifle.

This was the first time I had ever seen or shot a Huntsman, much smaller than I had anticipated. My initial impression of the rifle was how beautiful the walnut stock was, very elegantly done. The checkering, polished bolt and overall build quality is top notch.

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Daystate Huntsman Regal HR .22 Stats

The Daystate Huntsman Regal model PCP has a Worldwide reputation as the finest sporting air rifle in current production. The Huntsman’s pedigree of elegance and precision inspires pride of ownership sans the price associated with the Regal’s level of quality fit and finish. The Daystate team has raised the Regals performance standard with the addition of a HUMA regulator factory installed and tuned. The Regal HR provides the shooter a match winning level of consistent velocity and accuracy. Included with each rifle are two pressure gauges. One on the air cylinder for reading the rifles state of air charge and another in the stock forearm that displays the regulator pressure. The Huntsman’s handy size, lightweight and long range performance assure the owner satisfaction in the field or around the home. With one of the finest hand-rubbed walnut oil finished stocks and the meticulously fitted action the Huntsman Regal HR feels soft and looks solid. The ten shot magazine system readies the next pellet for fire with each cocking stroke from the polished chrome bolt handle. Long range accuracy is delivered from the Lothar-Walther barrel with very low muzzle report by the included Daystate reflex sound reducing system. The two stage adjustable trigger assure a crisp let off and accurate shot placement. The Daystate Huntsman Regal HR has, and will continue to set the standard that other sporting air rifles will be judged.

Caliber	.22
Max Velocity	900 fps
Muzzle Energy	30ft/lbs
Loudness	Medium
Barrel Length	17″ LW
Overall Length	36.5″
Shot Capacity	10
Barrel	Rifled
Front Sight	none
Rear Sight	none
Scopeable	11mm dovetail
Trigger	Two-stage adjustable
Buttplate	Fixed
Suggested for	Small game hunting/Target
Action	Bolt Action
Safety	Manual
Powerplant	Pre-charged pneumatic
Function	Repeater
Max Shots per Fill	43
Body Type	Rifle Sporter
Fixed/adj. power	Fixed/HUMA regulated
Weight	6.0 lbs
Cylinder Size	162 cc
Shrouded	Yes with 1/2″ UNF Threads

(NOTE) The rifle includes one 10 shot magazine, single shot tray, fill probe, instruction manual and factory test sheet.

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The first thing I did was to clean the barrel and mount the MTC Optics Mamba Lite 4-16×42 scope using BKL ring set.

The MTC Mamba Lite is one of my favorites due to its simplicity, weight and clear glass with side focus. I like keeping the magnification at 4x magnification that offers a nice wide field of view at closer ranges for small game hunting. Next I took a look at the 4.5″ Airstream Moderator that’s out front to quiet down the Huntsman.

This moderator fits the gun well and keeps the Huntsmans overall length down to just 36.5″/ The end of the shroud does have 1/2″ UNF Threading to mount a variety of moderators.

Moving on the Huntsman is fitted with a very well made barrel band that’s secured in three points to the 162cc Air reservoir.

The barrel band keeps the barrel system very secure under rugged field conditions and helps the rifle keep it’s POI indefinitely. Moving on the Huntsman is fitted with a pressure gauge located just in front of the Airtube. Just behind the gauge is the fill port area that can be found by turning the dust cover either left or right.

The Huntsman includes a probe that easily inserts allowing the gun to reach its max fill of 250 bar.

The Huntsman Regal has a 17″ LW barrel that’s been proven accurate through many of Daystate’s most accurate rifles.

Moving down the line I took a look at the receiver that’s topped with 11mm dovetail rail, with a stop just in front of the breech area.

One thing to note about the receiver is that it sits very low and is moved back, this in turn aids in offhand shooting and really brings the classic feel of the rifle. The Huntsman is a bolt action and a beautiful one at that. The bolt slides front and back very smoothly and has a long stroke cocking the rifle in just the last 1/4″ of travel. Out back just below the bolt is the manual safety that can be used with my thumb.

Down and to the left the rifle is on “safe” and up to the right the gun’s ready to fire. This is a beautifully made safety that is very easy to use and very reliable. Next I took a look at the two stage trigger that was adjusted just under 1lb and can be adjusted two ways for weight and length of stage.

This is a very nice trigger out of the box and should work well for a variety of shooting types. Under the forend is the HUMA regulator gauge that’s set to 140 BAR giving 43 regulated shots at just around 30fpe.

The Daystate Huntsman Regal has a beautiful walnut stock that’s elegant in every way with the nicest checkering one can find. The fixed rubber butpad out back provides a very comfortable feel when the rifles shouldered.

The raised cheek is subtle but gives the rifle that classic sporter type look and feel, very well done.

The checkering on the grip and forearm area is about the best I’ve encountered on an Air Rifle. After learning a bit about the Huntsman in the shop I was ready to get it out into the field for some testing and practice with it.

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The following day Marley and I drove into the mountains to spend some time setting up the rifle and to learn a little more about it.

 

The Huntsman comes with one 10 shot magazine and a very nice magnetic single shot tray, nice for pellet testing. The magazine has several neat features and really is an innovative design in many ways.

Besides being self indexing and easy to load it has a magnet that holds the magazine into the breech and aids in kind of sucking it into place.

Beyond the magnet it has a pin that plays a role in keeping the rifle from double loading, imperative in making this very field friendly. These magazines keep lateral pressure away from the pellets to allow them to load straight that in turn aids in accuracy. The magazine slides in and out very smoothly, the only lacking is having to keep track of shots as only indicator is “red” dot on side of magazine as it turns.

I set a target out at 55 yards and did some testing with various brands and weights of .22 caliber pellets. I found that the gun shot very consistently to 29 fpe using 18gr JSB’s and was accurate with a variety of JSB and H&N brand pellets ranging from 15gr to 19gr. With a 250 BAR fill I was able to get 43 shots before the rifle started to fall off the regulator. A good indication of a rifle falling off the regulator is a spike in velocity as well as the gun getting a bit louder. I found the report of the Huntsman to be medium in loudness, the OEM moderator works well considering it’s length.

The Huntsman shoots much better than I can and is in fact very accurate with a variety of pellets. I don’t consider the Huntsman Regal a bench gun but will say it shoots off bags fairly well, the bolt may not be the best ergonomically and is suited better to offhand use. I was very pleased with my 10 shot group at 55 yards, guns a real shooter and should work well for hunting.

After a short break I set up the RX Target system at 20 yards to practice some offhand skills, this target is the perfect tool for the range. The 1.2″ kill zones are very similar as to what we may find out in many small game hunting scenarios, great offhand practice for me.

The Huntsman Regal shoots better than most traditional style rifles due to its length and weight that’s centered rearward of the rifle. In the offhand position the bolt handle cycles very smoothly and in my opinion cycles almost faster than a sidelever design. The large handle is very quick and easy to cycle as well as giving a very satisfactory feel when cocking. I was able to hit all 5 kill zones with only one miss, definitely harder than it looks to hit those tiny targets. After spending most of the day filming for this review Marley and I packed it up and left for home. The next day we would be leaving early for a few days of hunting in two locations.

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Tuesday Morning Marley and I loaded up the Jeep to head several hours North of us to a very remote and familiar location. The weather has been extremely hot, so I was expecting the trip to be quite the workout. Airguns Of Arizona wanted me to do a full field review of this very overlooked rifle and to show it’s capability under heavy conditions found in the many remote areas I frequently travel. Marley and I arrived to our first stop at the halfway point to have some lunch and to check out the possibility of hunting ground squirrels. The area was at alpine level and thankfully much cooler than at lower elevations.

This was a nice place to stop to have some lunch and to hopefully spend a short time hunting some Ground squirrels that frequent this area. After lunch we hiked a short ways away from the jeep where we sat by a log using it as a rest.

Below us at about 100 yards I was able to spot several Ground Squirrels moving about on the many fallen trees.

Within about 15 minutes of waiting I was presented with several shots, with one connecting at just over 100 yards.

The Huntsman is no doubt an excellent choice for small game, even at some extended ranges. The MTC Optics Mamba Lite 4-16×42 fits the gun very well and in my opinion is about the best scope they make for this type of hunting. I like having smaller simplistic scopes that have lower magnifications for wider field of view at closer ranges, with higher magnification it can sometimes be difficult to find targets quickly. After a short hike back I packed up the Jeep where we headed back down the long single lane road heading out into the open desert.

(Note) Most of these photographs are snapshots from the enclosed video of our adventure at the bottom.

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The time was now close to 12:00 and the temperature heading down the long rugged dirt road was rapidly approaching 100 degrees.

This is a familiar area that has 246,812+ acres of huntable area and is home to an abundance of animals such as Pronghorn Antelope, Tule elk, Fox, Coyote, Mountain Lions, Wild Pigs, Cottontail, Jackrabbits and a wide variety of birds. This time of year this grassland is very dry and unforgiving making it one of the most extreme places to hunt in the country.

When I pack for trips like this I always bring huge amounts of water for not only myself but Marley. In extreme heat these areas bring the danger of heat exhaustion into full reality when hunting alone. Heat exhaustion is a killer and can sneak up very quickly causing headaches, confusion, loss of balance and blackouts followed by death. CARRY WATER AND DRINK PLENTY OF IT!!! Marley and I pulled into our camping area that has several trees, the only ones found for miles. After unpacking the gun, camera gear and a few other necessities we sat and enjoyed the shade before heading out into the open desert. This area usually has a good population of both jackrabbits and Cottontail found not to far from the camping area. Marley and I made our way in a Southern direction through a large pasture with patches of sagebrush, bordered by many rolling hills.

Just several months ago this place was green and bright with an abundance of wildflowers, amazing how quickly everything turns so dry. After about 20 minutes of hiking I was able to spot several large Jackrabbits moving parallel along a hillside giving me a good opportunity on one at 50 yards, THWAPP!!! Perfect headshot with Marley quickly behind to recover, was a bit hard to find due to the tall dry grass.

The Huntsman is a joy to carry, just over 6lbs and somewhat small making it super maneuverable through the thick bushes. To be honest I was not to excited about having bolt action and felt through my testing at the bench it may get annoying. I found that in the field shooting mostly offhand the Huntsman’s bolt cycles darn near quicker than I could maneuver most sidelevers. Moving on we headed along a small animal trail where I planned to get higher and to hopefully find some shade using the backside of a mountain. Marley and I slowly made our way through some very thick brush where I hoped to flush out a few rabbits.

Sure enough we flushed a few and took several missed shots on two fleeing jackrabbits, I think they got the memo that marley and I were coming. haha Marley and I took a water break and enjoyed the cooler temperature as the sun was going down.

After doing a little filming for this upcoming review we headed back down the hill where I hoped to spot the ears of both the Cottontails and jackrabbits that now may becoming active. We paralleled a ravine where I soon spotted a cottontail hunkered down on the embankment at 25 yards.

Excellent Headshot that marley happily recovered on the other side of the deep ravine.

With our pack full we headed back to camp just in time to take a selfie and to settle the camp in for the night.

That night was a full moon that brought sounds of Coyotes and the Great Horned Owl within a short distance of camp. The temperature was still about 80 degrees by 10:00pm so we slept in the back of the jeep with the tailgate open, was quite pleasant.

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Today Marley and I awoke at 7:15 and enjoyed the cooler temperatures as well as the ambiance of the many species of birds that call this place home. After a short filming session we were back out and hunting by 7:45am continuing a similar path as the night before.

Within a few minutes of hiking I spotted some ears at 45 yards hunkered down behind a bush, was difficult to set up camera because I had to raise the tripod so high to capture the footage.

The shot went a bit low into the shoulder due to me being in a hurry, marley quickly rushed to finish the job.

The Huntsman is a small rifle and shoots offhand so well, one of the better balanced rifles I’ve used. This rifle is putting out 30fpe in .22 caliber and is no doubt capable of hunting out to 100 yards with careful placement. My experience with this type of hunting is usually the shorter guns always win, longer guns are sluggish and difficult to maneuver in the field. Longer barreled guns drag through brush, hit things and are overall annoying unless shooting from stationary positions. If this was my gun to keep I would throw a sling on it and be ready to go…totally my type of gun.

Moving on by this time was quite difficult as the sun was coming down so hard on us with no shade for miles, Marley gave me that ‘look’ of, “Let’s get the hell outta here.” I was happy to oblige by packing it up and moving down the road in the air conditioned Jeep.

My time spent with the Huntsman was an absolute pleasure and really appreciate Airguns Of Arizona for sponsoring this review. I will enclose my final honest opinion of this rifle that will hopefully help someone looking to buy. Remember “The best Airgun is the one you’re shooting”

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PROS

• Lightweight
• Short
• Good Shot Count
• Accurate
• Nice Trigger
• Regulated
• Quick Cocking
• Durable
• Nice Magazine/Single Shot Tray
• 5 Year Warranty

CONS

• Fill Probe
• Medium Loudness
• Internally Adjustable Power

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