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Thoughts on the .44 Magnum Desert Eagle?

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mott555:
Currently my most powerful handgun is a Ruger LC9, for concealed use. Not very powerful, but good for its intended purpose.

I want to get something more powerful for open-carry situations, namely to be a sidearm when hunting, and for bear or mountain lion defense while camping in the Rockies. If I had to stop a bear with the LC9 I'd probably die. I also don't like using my 7mm Rem Mag to finish a deer at close range if I find it's still alive when I approach. What a mess. My LC9 works in that regard, but not very well. 9mm is too weak for deer in my opinion.

A 1911 in 10mm or .45 would be an obvious choice, but I've been thinking about a Desert Eagle in .44 Magnum for this purpose. The most fun I ever had firing handguns was with some friends and their Taurus .44 Mag revolvers, very powerful handguns with great accuracy and manageable recoil. Personally I don't care for revolvers, I much prefer a good semi-auto if it'll get used outside the shooting range.

I've been reading reviews online and they're all over the place. However I noticed they tend to fall into two camps: Experienced shooters who say it's a reliable handgun if you know how to handle it; and relatively inexperienced shooters who wanted a Desert Eagle because of Hollywood movies and claim it jams up every third shot. To which the experienced shooters respond that a bad grip or stance will cause it to jam.

I have zero interest in .50 AE at this time, but it's my understanding that conversion kits are available and easy to install.

What say you? Any opinions for or against it?

gsd:
A friend had one in .44, and I ran about 50 rounds through it. it is BIG. Everything about the gun is oversized. It felt comfortable in my hands once I got used to the weight and balance, but it is not something that I would even bother with trying to shoot one handed.

That being said, i didn't have a single function issue with it when I ran it, and accuracy was surprisingly good. now, i didn't run it past about 20 yards, so beyond that who knows, but inside of that it was a pretty solid shooter, if a bit punishing.

My 0.02 would be to steer you towards a 1911 in 10mm, or even a used S&W 1006. IMHO, the .44 is best served in a revolver platform, semi auto is just too much thump for a followup shot, and if a bear is coming at you, you will want to be back on target asap.

tobydog:
The Desert I had was a blast to shoot. 44 mag. That said, it was picky on ammo. FMJ would feed fine, lead would not, needed to be clean to function reliably. 44mag on a deer close range would be overkill and messy. I would think your 9mm would be fine to the head. I carried the Desert sometimes deer hunting just to try it, had mags blocked to 6 rounds I think to be sure I was legal. Never got a shot with it, but its heavy to carry all day. You would be better off with a light-weight revolver in 44mag for animal defense IMO. Wish I hadn't traded mine off.

mott555:
Hmm, good info. Might have to rent one sometime just to see how it handles with follow-up shots.

I know I like 1911's so it might make sense to get one of those first, then think about something larger for camping trips if I'm still worried about stopping power. I only get out to Colorado about once a year anyway, any 1911 would be worlds better than my little 9mm.

jonm:
I'll second the 10mm. I'd even look at a 10mm Glock. Lighter than a 1911 and holds double the rounds.

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