The Desert Eagle vs. hand size.

J

Japle

New member
I keep reading articles that say large hands or freakishly strong small hands are needed to fire the DE.
Bullcrap.
My hand span – thumb tip to pinky tip with fingers spread on a flat surface – is 8 1/2 “. That’s not exactly huge. It’s probably not even average. And while I do stay in shape, my grip strength is nothing to write home about.
In 1975, I bought a .44 AutoMag. The grip measures 5 ½” around and I didn’t have any trouble with it, winning a bunch of metallic silhouette matches over the early years of that sport.
Two years ago, I bought a .44 DE. The grip measures about 6 3/8”. Again, no problem. Actually, both guns are pussycats to shoot. There’s a lot of recoil, but they won’t hurt you. Recoil doesn’t bother me at all. Pain is another issue.
Anyway, if you have less than enormous hands, don’t let that keep you from shooting a DE. It’s a hoot to shoot and is plenty accurate. I like shooting clay birds set on the range backstop at 60 yds. After trimming the front sight, my .44 DE shoots right on the sights at that range and I can break a bird every shot if I pay attention to trigger control. Surprisingly, the DE shoots 240s and 180s to the same POI.
I’ve used my AutoMag for hogs and plan on using the DE next month. A 240 gr XTP at 1360 fps ought to work just fine.
 
Its most famous in its .50AE chambering, but its also available in .357 and .44 magnum.

I was able to fire a co workers .50 Desert Eagle once, I have somewhat small hands, but like you have no real issue with it. I think most folks don't differentiate between too large for a comfortable grip, and too large to hold securely.
 
I didn't say anything about the .50.
The gun's the same size as the .44 and I understand the recoil is a bit more brisk, but I doubt it's a big problem for an experienced shooter.
 
"Experienced shooter" are the key words here. Don't think I would want to let a novice shoot one of these. Good way to get hurt.....
 
There's a YouTube clip of some joker who had his girlfriend fire one. She had the wrong posture and a weak grip and it smacked her forehead. Whoever set her up was a jerk, but it's illustrative of the danger to an "inexperienced shooter".

I kinda want a .44 DE myself tbh.
 
I think I've seen that video.... I also recall an account of a man who was inexperienced- he held the gun close to one eye to sight it as one would a rifle- the slide struck his forehead and killed him. Not the only the fault of the shooter necessarily- but more of the person who handed him the gun. Such mishaps give this sport a bad name!
 
* * * I also recall an account of a man who was inexperienced - he held the gun close to one eye to sight it as one would a rifle - the slide struck his forehead and killed him.
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Gawd, I hope there's a YouTuber vid of this somewhere. These sorts of stories need to be vetted.

Not only the fault of the shooter necessarily - but more of the person who handed him the gun. Such mishaps give this sport a bad name!
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Not necessarily.

Those attuned to how things operate in the real world call it 'edumacation' on, roughly, the Darwinian theory of "survival of the fittest" - except it's tailored more to what might be called "survival of a new or unique experience by the less gullible, less ignorant human." :rolleyes:
 
About 40 years ago, a guy showed up at the Tucson range with a new Super Blackhawk and a box of factory .44 mag ammo.
He taped a target up and, before anyone could stop him, he held the gun way too close to his face and yanked one off. The front sight nailed him in the forehead and he dropped the gun on the bench.
After getting the bleeding stopped, he threw the gun in its box and stormed off. I regret not offering him $20 for the gun.
 
I agree. The DE 44 mag is a fun gun to shoot. It is very managable in the hands of an experienced shooter. My daugter is 5'4" and 150lbs and has no problems shooting it. I think most the videos you see on youtube is someone putting it in the hands of someone who has never shot before.
 
I wear a size 9 glove (8.5 surgeons glove is tight) and have no problem with shooting a Desert Eagle since 1984 (.357) and 1990 (.44Mag).

Nor do I have problems with the Auto Mag, the Coonan, the Wildey, or the LAR Grizzly.

I do think they could have made the grip on the DE a little smaller though. It wouldn't take much to make it much more comfortable, the Auto Mag fires a round the same length, but the grip is slimmer and for me, more comfortable.

The worst one, for me, is the Wildey, not only large, but it feels very "round" and slick. The Pachmayr grips on my Grizzly just seem to lock it into my hand. The reach is long, but the gun locks in solidly.

I always like to hear the real world experiences of magnum semi auto pistol owners, especially Auto Mags. Would love to hear yours!
 
I enjoy shooting mine. If you know what you're doing, and you keep the action clean,
they are amazingly accurate, and a lot of fun. Hand size isn't as important as
proper technique, as in how it is held, and being prepared to support the load.
Many folks put a hand under the mag, to hold the gun up. You have to let the
mag hang. Otherwise the bolt won't strip the next round properly from the mag.

The problem with the DE is the weight. Loaded, they weigh as much as a rifle.
I use mine at the range, but it makes for a lousy sidearm. It never gets carried
anywhere, open or concealed. Ever.

Which restricts it to being a very fun range toy.
 
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I met an NBA player that used to conceal carry one in a shoulder holster under a unbuttoned shirt. The gun looked normal size in his giant hands. I couldn't hold it comfortably with my medium hands, but then again I feel like the glock 21's grip is a hair too big for me.
 
The problem with the DE is the weight. Loaded, they weigh as much as a rifle.
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They don't, really, they just feel like they do.

My .44 Mag Desert Eagle (what is now called the Mark I) with 8 rnds weighs 4lbs, 8 oz.

Now, this is a lot, for a pistol, but if you have a 4.5lb repeating rifle in .44 Mag, show it to me, please!! ;)

To me, the worst thing about the Desert Eagle is the way it became a video gamer's gun and Hoilywood star. Reality is somewhat different.
 
I have a 44 DE that I enjoy. I also shot a 50 that I did not enjoy at all, it wanted to recall back and down into the top of my skull. Still shot it better than the owner.

Even the 44 I just consider a toy, why get a toy that can hurt you?
 
I had a custom cross-draw holster made for hunting. Not cheap at $100, but quite useable.
Using one for CCW would be more than I'd like. I have carried a S&W M-29 in an OWB holster for a month, just to see what it would be like. On a guy like me (5'9" and 142 lbs) it's too big, especially with two speedloaders, but still comfortable and no one noticed a thing.
The DE .44 is a hunting gun, pure and simple. Accurate and powerful. For big game in thick woods, I'd prefer it to a rifle.
 
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