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Magnum Research Desert Eagle Mark XIX .50 AE
.50 AE • Magnum Research

Magnum Research Desert Eagle Mark XIX .50 AE

Model: DE50

7
CAPACITY
6.0"
BARREL
4.5
LBS
Gas-operated, rotating bolt semi-automatic
ACTION
.50 AE
CALIBER
$1,917
MSRP

Full Specifications

Series Mark XIX
Action Type Gas-operated, rotating bolt semi-automatic
Trigger Single action
Trigger Pull 4.0 lbs
Safety Ambidextrous slide-mounted manual safety
Optic Ready No
Overall Length 10.75"
Barrel Length 6.0"
Height 6.25"
Width 1.25"
Weight 72.0 oz (4.5 lbs)
Frame Material Carbon steel
Frame Finish Black oxide
Slide Material Carbon steel
Slide Finish Black oxide
Barrel Material Carbon steel
Twist Rate 1:19 in right-hand, polygonal, 6 lands and grooves
Grip Type Black rubber wraparound
Country of Origin United States

About This Firearm

The Magnum Research Desert Eagle Mark XIX is a gas-operated semi-automatic .50 AE built for range shooting and handgun hunting. It has an MSRP of $1,917, and it works like a rifle, tapping gas from the barrel to turn a rotating bolt, because no recoiling slide alone will cycle a round this size.

The Picatinny-style rail runs along the fixed barrel from the end of the chamber to just behind the front sight, so a scope or a dot sits on a part that never moves and keeps its zero. The safeties are ambidextrous, the grip is wraparound rubber, and the magazine holds 7 rounds. The sights are fixed combat type, so the zero is whatever the factory set. At 72 oz and 10.75 inches long, in carbon steel throughout, this travels in a case.

If you're cross-shopping, the Smith & Wesson Model 500 is the revolver alternative, with an MSRP of $1,699, 5 rounds of a bigger cartridge behind an 8.38-inch barrel, and no gas system to keep clean. The Glock G40 Gen4 MOS holds 15 rounds of 10mm at 35.45 oz with a factory optic cut, half the weight for a similar reach.

Best For

GOOD
Range/Target
The gas system spreads the recoil impulse over a longer cycle than a blowback or short-recoil action would, which makes a cartridge this size easier to shoot repeatedly.
GOOD
Collecting
A gas-operated, rotating-bolt .50 AE pistol with a fixed barrel has no production equivalent, and the Mark XIX is the configuration the design settled into.
FAIR
Hunting/Woods Carry
A 6-inch polygonal barrel with a 1:19 right-hand twist and a rail for glass cover handgun hunting inside a hundred yards, but this is a chest-rig load at best.

Strengths & Limitations

Strengths
  • The optic rail is on the barrel and not the slide, so a dot holds zero without any slide milling.
  • Safety levers on both sides and a frame rail for a light are standard fittings.
  • Magnum Research builds it in the United States, and serial numbers beginning with two letters mark the US-made guns apart from the older Israeli production.
Limitations
  • The hammer has to be cocked or the slide racked before the first shot, which is a deliberate step.
  • Nothing on the sights adjusts, so iron-sight shooting means accepting the factory regulation.
  • The gas port and piston add cleaning that a revolver of the same power does not need.

Where to Buy

No prices available at this time.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does the action work?

Gas operated with a rotating bolt, the same locking principle a gas rifle uses. The barrel stays put and the bolt turns to unlock.

Can the barrel be changed for another caliber?

Magnum Research builds the Mark XIX frame around interchangeable barrels, and this is the .50 AE chambering of it.

What rifling does it use?

Polygonal, six ribs, right-hand twist. There are no conventional sharp-edged grooves in the bore.