[miatchguy]

What do you think of the Magnum Research Desert Eagle; rate it from 1 - 10, please explain, I'm looking for good input.

[10-Ring]

A cousin recently picked one up in 357magnum. I had the pleasure of putting 100 rounds through it. Lots of fun to shoot, seems quite reliable (only a few 100 rounds tho), so far seems accurate & has a high cool factor at the range.
1 to 10, 10 being best, I'd give it a 7.5 since I don't have alot of experience w/ them but so far everything is positive.

[DontShootMe]

Plus since it was on the matrix and we got to see the action operate in slow motion that automatically adds 1 point, so a 9+ is definitely in order.

That is, for the original .50 Action Express

The .44 mag comes in at around 8.0

.357 mag - 7.5


Here's a little DE story:

I was at my local indoor range about 2 months ago. The range is divided into 2 sections - about 20 stalls for civilian and 20 for special group rentals separated by a door. Well, from the group rental section, I begin to hear this thunderous BOOM every 1-2 mins. - kinda like that classic .45 ThUmp with a lot more underneath!

So anyway after a bit I finish up and on my way out there's a bunch of people in the lounge area talking about the guy who is shooting the .50 Desert Eagle. So then I realize the thumping I was hearing was the Eagle! This is my first time actually hearing one so I hung out a bit and listened to the chit chat.

The range counter guy was telling these two guys how the ammo the guy brought in to shoot cost him over $1 per round! That explains why there was no rapid fire!

So anyway I leave and I'm walking in the parking lot to my car and twice before I reached it i heard "(BOOM)" from within the soundproof range! I was shocked/awed - no other handgun I've seen there at the range has made that much percussive thunder!
http://www.magnumresearch.com/old/images/mark_desert_eagle_pistol.gif
oh my!

[ZekeLuvs1911]

I got a .44 Mag here. I'll rate a 8.5. The gun is so heavy that it actually has very little recoil. I've put about 100 rds through this monster and it performed very well. I did have 2 failure to eject. I don't know if this was the gun or just me. The Desert Eagle is very easy to dis-assemble and clean. It is also a great conversation piece.

http://www.hunt101.com/img/049454.JPG
http://www.hunt101.com/img/049455.JPG
http://www.hunt101.com/img/049458.JPG

[Tamara]

That is, for the original .50 Action Express

Actually, .357 is the original Desert Eagle caliber. :)



I'd rate 'em at about a 7.

They're interesting, if somewhat impractical guns. I personally think the finish is a little rough for a gun with such a steep entry tariff. Every few months I get a brief urge to buy one, but if I hold out for five minutes or so, it goes away. (I'd actually rate it a little less than a seven, but it scores back points on the interesting gas-operated rotary bolt mechanism. :cool: )

[only1asterisk]

What she said!

David

[Phyphor]

Just curious, but what is the procedure for field-stripping a Desert Eagle?

:D

[MicroBalrog]

I want one. I'm so :fire: ed off that IMI makes them, my tax money goes to IMI, but I can't have one. 10. (From a theoretical standpoint.)

[ZekeLuvs1911]

Phyphor,
They field strip just like a Beretta 92FS would. Push in the button on the left side of the frame, snap the lever on the right side of the frame down and presto! The whole barrel assembly slides forward and you take the barrel off and the slide follows. Easy! :)

[Edward429451]

I'll give the DE a 6.5

Its a cool gun and all, I'll give it that but it cost too much and you can't shoot lead out of it. Which takes away some of the versatility of it. While the DE is no slouch my Redhawk was a tad bit more accurate also.

[MJRW]

It just doesn't do much for me. I have a hard time paying any sum of money over 400$ for a gun that I will use (carry, HD, .22 emulation of something else I own). I certainly can't see paying 1000$+ for a gun that I can't carry, wouldn't use for home defense, and certainly doesn't cheaply emulate anything else I use. Now, if someone gave me one, I wouldn't kick it out of the safe. Its certainly cool. That interesting trapezoidal or whatever barrel, big hefty parts, and being able to fire off .44 or .50 is cool. It is one of the more interesting looking and and designed guns. So, it gets a 10 on the "ooooh" factor, but a 1 on the practicallity factor and a 4 on cost. So, overall, I give it a 5.

[davidtdm]

Can someone explain why you can't shoot lead through the DE as mentioned in the above posts. Forgive the ignorance.

...Dave

Oh. Although I've never shot one, I'd give it a cool factor of 10. One day I do hope to own one in .50.

[Edward429451]

Can someone explain why you can't shoot lead through the DE as mentioned in the above posts.

The DE is a gas operated pistol. As such there is a hole in the barrel which bleeds gas off to cycle the action. If you shoot lead through it, the lead shaves off on the gas port eventually clogging it so it cant get enough gas to cycle and it starts jamming on you. You could shoot lead through it for a while but it'd turn into a single shot on you in short order.

Some folks say they've had success shooting gas checked bullets in gas guns, cause the gas check scrapes the lead like a squeegee and keeps the gas port clean. I've never tried it, so don't know for sure. It would probably at least delay the clogging of the port.

[Sean Smith]

I've seen some of the lightweight-frame .44 Magnum Desert Eagles, and they were almost practical... on par with one of the big Ruger .44 Magnums as far as weight goes.

[raz-0]

well,

fun factor - 10
accuracy - 9
hunting - 8 (lots of people seem to like it for that)
ergonomics - 7 (I've had a lot of different sized folk use it, given it's size, it accomodates a surprising number of people, so bonus points.)
defense - 1 (better than nothing)
concealability - 0 (99.5% even the .5% needs to work at it way too hard)
price - 5
practicality - 4 (most of the practicality comes in on the hunting/sporting side)
build quality - 9 (on the mark XIX, the previous revisions had some issues, but the XIX is pretty tank like)
reliability - 2.5 (picky about ammo, technique, and cleaning, but mechanically sound in mark XIX version)

so a score of about 5.5. about average. It's not a defense gun, and you can't use it realisticly for IDPA/IPSC type sports. however, it's a decent hunting handgun, and it has been used in other types of sporting shoots to decent effect. It's usefull for socializing at the range, and geting you the opportunity to try out other folks' gear. And it is just damn fun. Of all the handguns I own, it more than any other leaves people wanting one after they shoot it with a big grin on their face. Even if they don't like the price tag, they still have the smile.

It is most emphatically not a first gun, or only gun... period.