.50 Action Express

The .50 Action Express is a rebated-rim, straight-walled pistol cartridge Evan Whildin of Action Arms developed in 1988, best known as a chambering of the Desert Eagle pistol. Its 13.8 mm base carries a rim the same diameter as the .44 Remington Magnum’s, so a Mark XIX Desert Eagle in .50 AE can be converted to .44 Magnum with nothing more than a barrel and magazine change. The bullet was reduced early in production from 0.510 to 0.500 inch, which gives the case its noticeably tapered profile.

It is one of the most powerful pistol cartridges in production. Besides the Desert Eagle, it has been chambered in the AMT AutoMag V, the LAR Grizzly, the Magnum Research BFR, the Freedom Arms Model 555 and the Bond Arms Cyclops.

All dimensional and pressure figures on this page come from C.I.P.’s published standard and are recorded as verified. Two bullet weights come from a Speer reloading supplemental data page, recorded as estimated bullet masses only, since that page’s published velocities are maximum-handload results tied to a specific powder charge rather than factory-ammunition figures. Two further loads, including a subsonic option, are recorded as verified from TII Armory’s own current product page, alongside its stated 6-inch test barrel. No photograph exists on this site of the pistol specifically in its .50 AE chambering, only of the Desert Eagle model generally.