The Desert Eagle, manufactured by Magnum Research Inc. and Israeli Weapons Industries, is a semi-automatic pistol known as the most powerful magazine-fed handgun to date, chambered in .50 Action Express.It is featured in countless movies, television shows, and video games.
History[]
Design[]
In January of 1983, Bernard C. White of Magnum Research and Arnolds Streinbergs of Riga Arms Institute filed a patent application for a gas-operated pistol. Two years later, a second patent was filed after Israeli Military Industries refined the design.
The Desert Eagle is fired by a single-action hammer, and features a manual safety. The safety is ambidextrous and rotates over a drum mechanism that locks the firing pin when initiated, preventing the gun from being fired.
What is unique about the Desert Eagle is that it uses a gas-operated mechanism, more commonly found on rifles than handguns. This enables the pistol to use rounds for more powerful than, say, a short-recoil or blowback mechanism.However, its size and bulkiness make it unsuited for concealed carry.
The pistol can quickly be converted into another caliber, requiring only a magazine and barrel change. There are several barrel length, and although a 10 inch (254 mm) barrel is available, the 6 inch (152 mm) barrel is most popular. The Mark XIX come with integral scope bases, making it easy to attach an optical scope to the handgun.