LAR Grizzly vs Desert Eagle

[GOG]

There you go.

 

[CountryGent]

And it came in today:



It is definitely on the larger end of the scale for a handgun. Shown next to a playing card for comparison.

 

[11Charlie]

Damn that is sexy!!

I like the hand written " Say hello to my little friend!"

 

[AMT]

Very nice!!! Looks exactly like my .50! I love the brushed nickel.

If you ever get tired of it, please print this thread and give me a call. I am looking for one in 44 and 357 to round out the corral.

 

[MrRob96]

Ah hell.... I think I know what my next handgun purchase is...

Thanks for spending my money, gents. /s

 

[wcdubois]

You are going to like that!
Just make sure you buy or reload full power rounds or the action will not cycle properly.
Ask me how I know...

 

[David Wilson]

I'd love to find one of those rare longslide LAR Grizzlies... I wouldn't be able to afford it, but oh well...

 

[AMT]

I'd love to find one of those rare longslide LAR Grizzlies... I wouldn't be able to afford it, but oh well...

When I can save enough pennies I'm ordering one of these.

.45 Super Longslide

 

[Tankjr]

You will have fun. Friend and I use to ding kegs out at 200 yards with his.

 

[CountryGent]

I did some shooting with the Desert Eagle on the home range today.

Information:

• It put 44 rounds of 240-grain Fiocchi .44 Magnum rounds through it.
• I shot 6 rounds of the same through a Model 29 for comparison.
• I then shot up the remainder of box of .44 Special through the wheelgun. I didn't try it in the DE as, as far as I know, that doesn't work.
• The pistol only came with one magazine, so I was only able to shoot with that one. (I ordered two OEM and two aftermarket ones.)
• I gave the DE a light lubrication with Ballistol before heading up.

Impressions:

• The pistol is surprisingly pleasant to shoot. I was expecting nastier recoil, but it is more of a push that a snap. It was noticeably less punishing than the revolver.
• I had a few failures to feed, particularly on the first two magazine. I don't know if there is a break in period with these or if there was some other factor.
• Accuracy was good.
• I didn't have any trouble working the controls, slide, etc.
• I look forward to trying some heavier loads and different magazines with this one.
• Assuming the minor reliability issues are worked out, I could see using this pair (DE and 29) for bowling pin shooting.
• The S&W Model 29 remains my all time favorite handgun, but this one appears to be a fun companion to said.

​

 

[Velzey]

Hand down I would pick the Desert Fire Breather. (it's been renamed by my family )
While I do like the Grizzly, I've also had to repair a few of them and things broke that shouldn't have.
The DE is far more accurate overall. Magazines are cheap. Takes me less than a minute to change from .44 mag to .50 AE.

 

[CountryGent]

@Velzey, thanks much. What loads does your DE like in .44 Magnum?

 

[Velzey]

@Velzey, thanks much. What loads does your DE like in .44 Magnum?

220gr jacketed bullet, they do feed hollow points fine
26.0 grains of H110
Federal 155 primer

They don't really like reduced loads. It won't cycle the action.

 

[AMT]

They are beast's when brand new.

For FF issues that I had in my DE50, i poked around online. One suggested that the mag spring was extremely tight (until broken in, and "sagged" a little). It was pushing up on the next round in the mag too much causing dragging on the bolt and wouldn't feed into the chamber correctly. It was suggested to keep 3-4 rounds in the magazine when stored. That would help "sag" the spring just a little. I thought "what the heck, I'll give it a try. What do I have to lose?"

Well, it worked for me. I haven't had any FF issues. I store it with 3 in the mag.

It may or may not work for you, but it wouldn't hurt to try.

 

[Seraphim38]

I have owned a Desert Eagle 44, and bought a LAR Grizzly for a friend, so I have plenty of range time on both. They are different animals.

The DE is a great gun but it is heavy.
My friend is a 1911 fan, so he wanted the Grizzly and he is very happy with it.

I have long since sold the DE. At that time I was going through a phase of trying to shoot the biggest guns I could find, but now I am much more practical, as I want found that follow up shots and accuracy to be more important in the long run. I now shoot 9mm and 45ACP, and can go through 1k rounds a month, which I couldn't have done with a 44 mag or 45 win mag

 

[MikeInOr]

I found the DE a little too large and heavy for my tastes but I really wanted a big bore semi-auto. I picked up a Desert Eagle L5 (Light weight aluminum frame with a 5" barrel and compensator) in .50ae a couple months ago. I absolutely love it! I hit the 14" 100 yard gong with the first shot yesterday... and yes, I do have a witness. Of course the next 20 shots missed... I need to learn to stop while I am ahead.

I had no idea what I was getting into when I ordered the L5 in 50ae as they are new this year. The 6" XIX is 4 lb 6 ounce empty. The 5" L5 is 3 lb 2 ounce empty. I was worried about the recoil of the lighter gun in 50ae since the only other DE I have shot was a .41 mag. The recoil is big but slow and not punishing in the least. With the compensator it doesn't have much flip. I put 50 rounds through it yesterday and felt no strain. The trigger was pretty hoe-humm for a single action. After reading online I found that all XIX and L5 triggers are adjustable by using a small hex wrench and going in through the top of the mag well with the barrel and slide removed. After futzing around with the trigger setting for a while I found tightening the hex screw all the way until the trigger would not fire any more then backing it out about a half turn is perfect. It isn't a tuned 1911 trigger but it is a world better than how it shipped and I shoot a lot better with it now. The L5's are supposed to have a bit smaller grip than the XIX's. The grip is still huge but it fits my x-large hand very well. The wide grip really does a nice job of spreading the recoil out over the the entire palm of my hand making it very manageable.

The two things I found disappointing are the sights and the finish. I don't like combat sights and can't hit anything with them so I swapped in the fiber 3 dot sights available on the Kahr / Desert Eagle web page. MUCH better!!! I also don't like the black oxide finish on the slide and barrel. It just isn't a tough or pretty finish. A Cerakote refinish is definitely in its future. I wish a brushed stainless version was available but I don't think the L5 models are going to get this option for quite a few years. The finish on the Aluminum frame is is very nicely done and I don't think it will need refinishing for quite a while.

I am using 32.2 grains of H110 behind 300gr 50 cal plated berry bullets and it is working very well for me. Any lighter charge and I wasn't getting a full burn on the powder so burning powder would come blowing back into my face if I shot into the wind.

I was considering picking up a 5" .44 mag barrel when they become available but I am so happy with the .50ae I don't see much reason to. If I had other .44 mag guns I would get the 44 barrel but the 50 is serving me well.

Edit: Midways price on .44 240 gr Berry's plated bullets is $0.13. Midways price on .50 300 gr Berry's plated Bullets is $0.24. I remember the attraction for getting a .44 mag barrel now! Of course the cost of a .44 mag barrel would buy a lot of .50 bullets!

 

[CountryGent]

I did some work on the home range today, including setting up a new steel target, and I ran another 50 rounds through the DE. Results:

• Much better reliability after the first outing and a good cleaning/lubrication. It ran perfect with OEM magazines. I now have three of them and will add more now that I know I'll need to stick with said.
• On that point, the two ProMags I picked up aren't worthless, they are worse than worthless.* They wouldn't feed a single round properly. Then a "weird" thing happened after trying one: the slide wouldn't go back. I found I had to push in the slide release in (not down) and then it would retract. I removed the slide, barrel, etc., wiped it clean, reassembled, and went back to stock magazines and it ran like a champ. Coincidence? Hey, I don't know, but regardless the aftermarket mags are going in the "too dump" parts box I have a the office/workshop tomorrow.
• It was fun shooting stuff with this one, include steel silhouette targets. I'm looking forward to plinking said and, when I can pickup a supply, pins.
• I still prefer the S&W Model 29, due to the grip, sights, and reliability, but his one is growing on me.

* My experience with ProMags has ranged over the years from great and/or as good as originals, not the best but fine for plinking on the home range, to place directly into the trash bin. These two are most assuredly in the latter most category.

 

[skidder]

I have had the .357, 44, and 50AE Dessert Eagles and I liked them all! But, the gun I have kept is the 45 Win Mag Grizzly with a 45acp conversion. I really like the feel of it and it sure is accurate. I did have the .357 Grizzly and it was a good shooter ,too.

 

[CountryGent]

Follow up question: I see Magnum Research offers conversion kits to the various calibers available. The appear to comprise of a replacement barrel and two magazines, so it is an easy swap. The one .50AE looks like gonzo fun and the .357 a more practical endeavor. Or, perhaps more candidly, just because.

Any play with such? Good, bad, or ugly? Thanks, friends.

 

[techiej]

Haven't played with it but you need to swap out the bolt as well if you are going to switch to/from 357. 44 & 50 use the same bolt.