Nation of origin: Israel
Ammunition: .357 Magnum or .44 Magnum
Operation: rotating bolt
Weight: empty, steel frame, 1.701 kg
Length: with 152 mm barrel, 225 mm
Length of barrel: 152, 203, 254 or 356 mm (see text)
Magazine capacity: .357 Magnum, 9 rounds; .44 Magnum, 7 rounds
When one encounters the Desert Eagle pistol, one enters the world of pocket artillery, for the Desert Eagle is currently one of the most powerful automatic pistols available anywhere in the world. Strictly speaking, the Desert Eagle is not really a combat pistol, but it is inevitable that some will find their way into military or police hands and thus find a use far removed from the competition benches for which the Desert Eagle was originally intended.
The Desert Eagle had its origins in the United States when the first examples were produced by a company known as M.R.1. Limited of Minneapolis. The pistol was developed to meet a demand from the gun buffs who are attracted primarily by having the most powerful or largest of anything. There is a considerable interest in producing and firing powerful hand cartridges in the United States, and from this enthusiasm for producing something more powerful than that used by the other guy, grew the Magnum cartridge concept. Quite simply this meant putting more than the usual amount of propellant charge into a cartridge to fire a heavy, often blunt-nosed, bullet with the resultant on- target effects being dreadfully effective and impressive (the ‘Dirty Harry’ syndrome). The main problem for pistol designers was that the Magnum rounds are too powerful for the orthodox breech mechanisms used by most automatic pistols. Almost all the pistols produced to fire Magnum ammunition had been revolvers until the Desert Eagle appeared. Revolver frames are simple, have few moving parts and can be built to be strong enough to take the firing stresses involved with Magnum cartridges.
It was not long before someone decided to produce a Magnum- firing automatic pistol. That someone was M.R.1. Limited, and at first the intended market was the sporting pistol buff. As so often happens with small arms innovations, design skills were not matched by marketing abilities, and eventually Desert Eagle production switched to Israel, where all manufacturing and marketing is carried Out by Israel Military Industries (IMI).
In order to overcome the considerable chamber pressures inherent its Magnum rounds, the Desert Eagle uses a fixed barrel combined with a rotary breech locking system. This type of locking system is now widely used on assault rifles and other weapons, but to find it employed in a pistol is unusual. As a cartridge is chambered, a rotary lock on the face of the breech block engages in jugs around the chamber. As the cartridge is fired, a proportion of the propellant gases are tapped off through a gas port close to the chamber, and impinge upon a piston. The piston is driven to the rear and pushes two side arms which in turn operate a cam to turn the rotary breech block head and so unlock the breech. By that time, the chamber pressures will have fallen to a relatively safe level and the usual recocking and reloading sequences can proceed.
This photograph of a Desert Eagle about to be fired clearly
demonstrates the large overall dimensions of this pistol.
A trio of Desert Eagles. The example as the top has a stainless
steel finish; the centre weapon is fitted with an optional long barrel
and has a standard barrel just underneath; the bottom example is finished
in a rather unusual camouflage scheme which would appear to be more emotive
than practical.
Safety has to be an important factor on a pistol as powerful as the Desert Eagle, and applying the ambidextrous safety catch not only locks the firing pin, but disconnects the trigger mechanism as well. The safety system is claimed to be efficient to the extent of preventing firing even when the pistol is accidentally dropped onto its hammer.
What is not immediately discernable with the Desert Eagle is its large overall scale and weight. It is a bit of a handful to tote around and this, coupled with the fearsome recoil forces produced by Magnum rounds, means that it is not a tote to be handled by the novice. This alone has made some potential military and police users draw back from procuring the type. The noise, flash and recoil ‘jump’ are enough to make the raw recruit nervous about even handling the weapon, to the extent that only pro longed and careful training can make the Desert Eagle a viable service pistol. In the hands of a trained user the Desert Eagle is a fearsome weapon and a prodigious man-stopper, to the point where an adversary could not fail to be knocked over and disabled by the traumatic shock 0 even a non-lethal hit. This makes the Desert Eagle an attractive weapon to special forces and paramilitary police units where the necessary training is available. In the hands of a tyro, the Desert Eagle is inevitably quite a handful and a potential danger to all, but there could be situations where even the sight of a pistol the size of the Desert Eagle could be enough to make potential assailants think twice.
The Desert Eagle is produced in two forms; one chambered for 0.357 Magnum and the other for 0.44 Magnum. Both versions have identical external dimensions, but the magazine capacity is reduced from nine rounds to seven on the 0.44 model. Both versions can be produced with steel or aluminum frames. The Standard barrel is 152.4 mm long, but to suit individual competition shooting requirements the standard barrel can be easily removed without recourse to tools and replaced by a barrel 203, 254 or 356 mm long. The longer barrel lengths are used for long range com petition shooting in conjunction with optical (telescopic) sights that can be mounted on grooves in the barrel. This pistol can also accommodate a range of complex and adjustable ‘iron’ sights, and to take the individual competitor’s requirements to full account it is possible to replace the entire rear assembly with an optical adjustable assembly.
All these refinements will be of little interest or utility for the combat pistol user. He will be concerned primarily with the com bat shooting qualities of the Desert Eagle, and the pistol has many attractions. Apart from the distractions of its size and bulk, the Desert Eagle is extremely well made (it has to be to accommodate the firing stresses involved) and well balanced, and its projectile is dreadfully effective on target. The main problem is quite simply the handling of the weapon. Military and police small arms instructors already have quite enough to do to make recruits handle conventional pistols safely and sensibly. They often have to overcome inherent fears and poor aiming produced by the noise and recoil forces involved with lesser rounds. Exactly how they would teach trainees to handle the pocket artillery cartridge loads associated with the Desert Eagle is a considerable training challenge.
It would seem safe to assume that any military or police employment of the Desert Eagle will be confined to specialist users who have the time and facilities for the training involved, and the sense to use the pistol properly, and safely, if it ever has to be used operationally.
One item of late news is that there are rumors about a version of the Desert Eagle that will soon be produced to fire the .41 Action Express cartridge.
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