Like any good kid in the 80's, I watched every action movie from that time, and they all seemed to have Desert Eagles in them.  I think even Billy in Predator had one, in a shoulder holster.

But I never got around to buying one, instead a bought a much more useful S&W 629.

Now I'm thinking about going back to the days of old, and getting an 80's style DE, in .44 Mag.  Couple of questions:

1. Are there any major differences between the ones made in the 80's, and current models?  Are the current ones better via various internal improvements, or just in rails and such to be able to put lights and lasers and Pez dispensers on them?

2. Do the 80's versions use all the same internal parts as the current versions, such that there's no issues about spare springs, extractors, etc.

3. I've seen a few that have been Mag-na-ported.  Any function issues if so, or no problems?  Since they are gas operated, I suppose if too much gas is bled off, maybe there's not enough to cycle.  Or maybe there's so much gas from a .44 that there's no issue.

4. Anything else to look for with regards to 80's Desert Eagles?

Thanks,

Good news is that used ones typically have low round count. People seem to buy them and quickly have their fill of shooting them.

ETA. Talking about the .50

On a whim I bought one in 87 I think.   It was a 357 and shot decent enough but it was a stupid ass gun.  That said as an early model I wish I would have kept it for collectability.   That said not sure what it would be worth today.

I bought a new 44 Mag when they first came out.  Accuracy was fantastic, but the fixed sights hit WAY WAY high.  Even at 100 yards, it was a foot or so over the target and the trigger was a creepy ass POS.
Reliability was poor.  It didn't matter what load I put through it, what kind of death grip I put on it, the thing would fail to eject (stovepipe) at least once per mag.  Keep in mind, that was a sample size of one single pistol.
I also had an LAR Grizzly in 45 Win Mag at the time, and that thing ran 100% and had a great trigger, and a 357 Magnum conversion kit....so I sold the DE.  

I've had quite a few more DE's since then, and the latest ones seem the best.

Tony

I'll do some research on the various versions.  Am I correct in saying there are three - the MKI being the original 80's version, the MKVII, and the current version the MKXIX?  

What are the main differences between the three, other than the diameter of the barrel?

https://zvis.com/dep/depfaq.shtml

Good info, thanks.

and then there's Tapatalk:

https://www.tapatalk.com/groups/thedeserteagle/index.php

Naturally the Mk I was the first, then they brought out the Mk VII and then the current model is the Mk XIX.

The frames are pretty much all the same from what I can find. Though I have heard about fitment issues on some early ones using later made slides/barrels.

I have a Mk I with complete top ends for 357 and 44.
The Mk I 357 barrel, slide and bolt are all different than the 44 mag.
The barrel is slightly smaller in diameter, the shaft of the bolt is smaller, and the slide is smaller. Also the gas piston is held to the slide with a roll pin instead of the recoil spring guide.
From what I can find, the Mk I and Mk VII 44 mag barrel, slide, and bolt are all the same, just the shape of the safety lever changed.
Mk I had a single stage trigger. When they switched to Mk VII, they started using a two stage trigger.
I actually found a complete Mk VII two stage trigger assembly on ebay and it fit my Mk I with no issues and it significantly better than the original Mk I trigger.

Now I do not know if the Mk VII 357 used the same slide and barrel diameter as the 44, hopefully someone else may be able to answer that.

When they switched to the Mk XIX, they changed the barrels and slides to be the same on all 3 calibers. No more having to change slides with the barrel.
Because of the difference in the case head diameter, you have to change out the bolt to be able to shoot 357, but the slide is the same.
They also changed the top of the barrels and got rid of the small 3/8 dovetail that was used on the Mk I and VII, and changed it to a two slot weaver style groove. They then later changed that to the current picatinny rail.

The old ones were made by IMI.  Same IMI who made the uzi, galil, and tavor.  A real war factory.

Current ones are kahr.  

I have one of the current ones in 357.  It works as advertised.  Just doesn't have the same cool factor as one built by IMI.  They do make up for it by offering them in case hardened and gold.

I like the IMI XIX ones the best with the two-slot weaver rail.  

The new style full top picatinny is fugly and the crazy comp thing makes it look like a bad prop from a dystopian future movie.

Had one for awhile, it's the only gun I ever regret selling.

The one I had my eye on, on GunBroker, got bid up to 1700 bucks, which probably isn't a bad price for what it was, but too rich for my blood for this gun.  

Was a nice one - stainless, ported, and had a trigger job done on it.  But the DE isn't enough of a wanted item for me to spend that amount on.

Thanks for the information from all.