Reloading .50 AE for the Desert Eagle?

Mn Fats said:

Question; What is a reliable reload you've found for your DE 50AE.

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I haven’t branched out very far, using Berry’s to shoot paper and pumpkins mostly. I bet with H-110 you’ll work up past 30 grains with a 300 grain bullet. I have used the obligatory Speer Deep Curl and Uni-Cor to success as well.

I use CCI large pistol magnum primers only, as mine and a very many bolt faces I have seen have the ejector cut inside the primer face area. This lets some of the primer push into the area at firing. I sue this as my limiter for loading. I don’t want it so bad it shears bits of primer cup off when it unlocks.

I find that a plated bullet can take all 50AE has to offer, and when stepped on are very accurate.

I also find that neck tension is paramount for the abuse the cartridges take inside the magazine while firing. Bullet Setback in a Desert Eagle is extraordinarily unpleasant. (Registered trademark.)
I like wasp waists.

QUOTE="Mn Fats, post: 12166087, member: 243941"]Second, how long do the cases last before they split or cause malfunctions?[/QUOTE] Even with the magnitude of the Action Express the brass will last a long time. I have more than seven cycles on a set. They are getting short though. The primer pockets get short. I would hate to experience a magazine’s worth of slam fires in an Eagle.

Mn Fats said:

Third, how much is it costing you to reload per round assuming you already have the brass.

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What ever you can get burned on primers for. Then around two hundred cartridges per pound, more or less. Mine is on the less side. I like fire.

The real cost is the bullets. That is a lot of lead, and the companies charge accordingly. Many will suggest that you should only load premium bonded hollow points for punching paper, because “Fifty”. I’d rather shoot it more then that. My paper won’t care. And the AE doesn’t get enough speed to make the plated bullets fail.

Mn Fats said:

Also, I've read one post somewhere that stated slow burning powder is much better at cycling the slide on a Desert Eagle. Comments?

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Like an AR, there needs to be enough gas to unlock the bolt and operate the slide. Any proper magnum powder will have that in spades. But, since the Eagle is gas operated, there isn’t much downloading with a faster powder for it. Mine will operate at start charges with magnum powders with no problem.
I have heard of others trying to use Power Pistol or other faster powders, at the edge of sanity, just to make it work. Dangerous.
I have read of gas piston sizing problems, but I have broken one and tried both that I ordered with success. Both measured the same as the broken one as well.
(The only centerfire I’ve ever broken and it was a Desert Eagle?!)

Load data in the spoiler below. This is my own data that works in my firearm. You should follow load data you find from reputable sources such as load manuals. Use the following data at your own risk. Neither I, THR, any of the staff or members, or any magical leprechauns are responsible for any results of the following info.


Edit: Fair warning, that load makes it a bit of a flamethrower, as seen in the picture a few posts down.

Peeeeeew!

The Glockodile said:

View attachment 1049992

Peeeeeew!

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Shoot em and cook em at the same time!

My own barbecue lighter…

jebova2301 said:

spoiler

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Mine is just a little longer and thus, a half grain more powder. I need a tripod for my phone.

Demi-human said:

My own barbecue lighter…

Mine is just a little longer and thus, a little bit more powder. I need a tripod for my phone.

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Is that the shockwave rippling over your wrist?

The Glockodile said:

Is that the shockwave rippling over your wrist?

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Yes.

Demi-human said:

Yes.

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Sweeeet!

Look up loading data for the M114 Howitzer and you'll be close. Should work as starting loads.

Demi-human said:

My own barbecue lighter…

Mine is just a little longer and thus, a half grain more powder. I need a tripod for my phone.

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I have taken it all the way up to 35, but wasn't really feeling any benefit of it. 99% of the time, I am just punching paper or ringing steel, so I really don't need to go nuclear on the loading. May as well stretch that powder a bit further.

Mn Fats said:

No issues is great, I was planning a load similar to this. I'll adjust it accordingly.

Now all I need is dies. Do they not make carbide dies for the 50 AE? I don't mind lubing, but carbide would be nice.

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Rcbs used to make them, but you were gonna pay a pretty penny for them. Back in 2012, they cost about 350 bucks. You can probably contact them and see if they can still be ordered, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are in the 400-500 range by now when you factor in the inflation.

My friend and I recently loaded some test rounds with H110 from 30.0 to 33.0 grains under 300 gr Hornady JHP bullets for his Desert Eagle. We haven't been able to test them yet, but I'll report back once I do.

Mn Fats said:

Now all I need is dies. Do they not make carbide dies for the 50 AE? I don't mind lubing, but carbide would be nice.

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jebova2301 said:

Rcbs used to make them, but you were gonna pay a pretty penny for them. Back in 2012, they cost about 350 bucks. You can probably contact them and see if they can still be ordered, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are in the 400-500 range by now when you factor in the inflation.

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I bought the very last two brand new sets in existence from RCBS, no joke.

They were expensive.

They're an odd - sized die, and required thread adaptors.

The Glockodile said:

I bought the very last two brand new sets in existence from RCBS, no joke.

They were expensive.

They're an odd - sized die, and required thread adaptors.

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Aren't they "1 1/2-12" threaded, much like the 50bmg dies? It's been a long time since I bothered looking, but I thought they were compatible with my Lee single stage if you threaded out the standard thread reducer and used the large threads(just like 50bmg dies do). I could be completely wrong on that, though.

For the record, I put that in quotes as a "this is all one statement" thing, not a "quote-unquote" type thing meaning shyster words.

They're 1" - 14.

I remember thinking of getting one of the really basic Lee presses because it had such a big "hole" in it, which accommodated all sorts of bushings / thread adaptors, just for the .50 AE...

That was in 2019.

Haven't really moved forward since then

The Glockodile said:

They're 1" - 14.

I remember thinking of getting one of the really basic Lee presses because it had such a big "hole" in it, which accommodated all sorts of bushings / thread adaptors, just for the .50 AE...

That was in 2019.

Haven't really moved forward since then

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Won't lie, I have one of the cheap Lee classic cast presses(it and my Lee classic turret look a little funny on the bench next to my Mark 7 Evo and Dillon 750, but whatever), and it has been a great press. Obviously it is slow, but it works well for what it is.

The two jacketed bullets I use the most are the Speer 300gr TMJ and the Speer 325gr JHP. Using CCI 350s with Win296/H110 and Accurate #9 with data from the Lyman manual and Speer's website. Any combination of these has operated my gun flawlessly.

I'm on the same page as Demi, my extractor pocket is oversized and my primers flow into that so I too use it as my determining factor for loads in my DE. Funny anomaly though, the same loads in my DE that have rounded primer edges are flatter than all get out when fired through my 50AE AR barrel. I guess the extra flow into the extractor groove of the DE takes pressure away from the edges of the primer. Still less than 100 rounds through the AR barrel though so need to continue testing to see what that's all about.

I also shoot the NOE HTC502-325-FN powder coated with a gas check.. I haven't put too many through the DE on a regular basis because I didn't have the gas check version and wasn't happy with plain base checks. I recently replaced it with the gas check version so i'll be working with that more in the near future.

The most I have is four reloads on brass I bought as once fired and they have not split yet. I use Hornady dies and their "unique" case lube, never had an issue sizing them. It takes a surprisingly minimal amount of sizing for them to fit back in the chamber, my sizing die is backed off a good distance from touching the shell plate.

When I loaded 50 AE I used Hornady dies:
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1011099289?pid=631376

Out of stock (there's a surprise) - did not require lube iirc.

• Pistol dies feature a titanium nitride ring that's harder than carbide and doesn't require lubrication

Load wise, I loaded at or near max with H110 and Berry's plated 300 grain and they worked fine. The Berry's were rated to 2000fps. I think I was around 1450 to 1500fps, so well under max. This is going by memory though.
I also had a 44 Mag barrel for it. I never did get the 44 to be as reliable as the 50.
I sold my DE about 9 months ago - my 50AE reloading stuff went with it.

bsev81 said:

the same loads in my DE that have rounded primer edges are flatter than all get out when fired through my 50AE AR barrel

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I wonder if this has anything to do with headspacing. A little more space let’s the primer blackout farther on ignition, before the powder burn crushes it all back into the pocket. I’ve seen this effect in rifle brass with differing sizing while retaining the same charge weight. For example, my target rifle showed no pressure when crush fit, but flat primers when accidentally fully sized like my ARs. I know that it is a fully maximum load and should flatten them some, but with such restricted movement they stay rounded.

That’s why I don’t like to rely on primers as a sign of pressure, they lie at first. I really have to interrogate them for the truth. I found my truth when depriming the cases and discovering the side that flowed into the ejector had soot in the swale on that side of the pocket. The whole primer moved back, but only most of it was pushed forward again.

I would love to get custom brass that was very long from Starline to cut perfectly to my chamber. For my Eagle and 1911. I wonder if the ejector shearing would be less with a tighter fit to the chamber. With the primer supported by the breech face and the ejector, and with no headspace movement it would be nice to have zero primer flow since we are not actually at brass flow pressure like a rifle can get to.

Just loud wonderings…

I load up my Desert Eagle with 24.7 grs. of 2400, because I have a ton of that powder, but it works well. I am using Berry's 50AE round shoulder 300 gr. bullets, that I got for $143/ 500. They run on avg, about 1250fps, and I have no problems, with cycling. What really set my Desert Eagle off, was when I changed sights to the Trijicon DEO1 night sights. What a difference. Have fun, and happy reloading...if you can find everything you need, which is the battle now a days.

Stop with all the fireball videos. You making me want a 50 AE.