Every really popular handgun has something unique.. you got the 1911..the most popular, the Luger...the most historic....the Glock..the original tupperware gun...the Beretta....John McClains and the militarys choice.. Ok...check.. have at least one of each of them..
Then you have this...the Desert Eagle, American ingenuity, designed by Magnum Research, then refined and built by IMI/IWI in Israel or the U.S. depending on the time frame. Near as I can figure, possibly one of the largest weighing in at 4 pounds 13 ounces loaded(mine minus the scope, an M1 Carbine loaded weighs just a pound more), possibly one of the most powerful semiauto handguns available, the original being the AutoMag. No 45acp, no 9mm, no .40S&W need apply, as these used only the larger magnum cartridges, .357, .41, .44, .440 Corbon and .50AE. They are designed more like a rifle than a handgun, have a gas system much like a M14 or M1 Carbine and a 4 lug rotating locking bolt design like an AR. Due to size and weight, it's a very unconventional for a CCW or home defense weapon. And while not a "historical" weapon, it gets most of it's popularity from film, the same way the S&W 29 did...Agent Smith and The Matrix for example and numerous other films.
This example is the Desert Eagle Mark VII in .44 Mag, I opted for the smaller caliber because I currently have it, and 50AE is pretty pricey. I found this beast buried amongst some really high priced Lugers, like $4K+ Lugers, I even found a 06/24 Swiss Luger with holster at a local shop, just $5000, today, strangely this was way under market value.. It looks to had been used some, but not much judging by the internals. It can be upgraded to the .50AE with a barrel and mag change. Which would take about 2 or 3 minutes. I will post later on and show the inner workings of this beast, which you will see it is a very simple, but a very robust design. The barrel does not tilt or move during firing like other pistols, along with polygonal rifling like a Glock, makes it a very accurate weapon. It is fairly common to find them in silhouette and target shooting, and I guess one could hunt with it.
And as a disclaimer, I found the recoil no worse than my S&W 29, I did have to try it and I did like it
and if you even think about limp wristing this beast, it lets you know. You need a healthy set of hands for the monster grip, but I had no jams, it functioned great, and if you notice in the picture, the magazine sticks out slightly, thats normal, it's a floating magazine so it fits kind of loose once inserted. It adjusts to where it wants to be, if you molest it during firing, it could cause a misfeed or jam.
Now...I gotta go get it dirty..Again