The Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Barrel [LEON CUSTOM] Supplemental Manual is a short story about Leon S. Kennedy at the time of the airsoft gun's release in 2008. Scans provided by Sonny Bauer.
Released: February 2008
THE STORY OF THE LEON CUSTOM
Leon S. Kennedy
On September 29th 1998, he was assigned to the Raccoon Police Department as a rookie police officer, but he faced that horrible tragedy...
Then he later escaped from Raccoon City. 10 years have already passed since he miraculously survived and he's now active as an agent of the United States. Leon's constantly on edge in his role as an agent, so there are times he can relax and take a break. At such times, he always cracks open a desk drawer in his room.
There are two special boxes in there...
He'd occasionally look at them, bringing back old memories. That abominable tragedy! A desperate attempt to escape! "Here are some trusty pals...", in one hand, the sight of them calms him down while cleansing his old memories, and at the same time stirring up a new fighting instinct. When opening one of the boxes, a brown wooden box, inside is the "Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Custom" with a sheathed dual-tone body, a handgun nicknamed a "Hand Cannon" and chambered for the world's most powerful .50 AE (Action Express) bullets.
When squeezing it after a long time, the gun's weight comes through... When he closes his eyes, he relives his memories of the past... And this Hand Cannon has killed many powerful foes. The weight of the gun makes those memories clearer. The gun itself has accrued considerable wounds over the passage of time. Even though the steel barrel was meticulously cared for, the ridges are still faintly tarnished. The wooden grip's also thoroughly worn-out due to the scars of fierce battles being dug deep into it. Just looking at it makes him forget how much time has passed. He can return to his senses by closing the lid on the wooden box.
This brown wooden box is just a reproduction. As the original has disappeared, he remade it based on his memories of the time. A new wooden box untethered to the past may have played a role in severing his memories of that time.
—WHY WAS HE SO PARTICULAR?--
He wanted to keep the "familiar gun" he survived that tragedy with, as a personal collection. He didn't want to say farewell to his "trusty pal." That was his state of mind. Next to the brown wooden box was another, a black box. Inside was the "Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Barrel Chrome Stainless Leon Custom", covered in a body of smoky oxidized silver that sparkled when he opened it. The duo looked like two peas in a pod, but something was definitely different!
To acquire a custom gun for his personal use, he had put in a request with a gunsmith for a special model to bring back his "reliable buddy" in a modern fashion. By not only remaking it but also refining areas where he recalled feeling discomfort or defects in his combat experiences, they produced a "Custom Desert Eagle" surpassing the "most powerful in the world" for the purpose of combat deployment that may come sometime soon.
Though he didn't know anything about it at the time, he'd used a gun supplied by the "R.P.D.", but it's also true its low performance allowed Leon to have already mastered it.
—TIME HAS PASSED SINCE THEN--
It's natural for someone who has matured further to want to have the "most powerful gun in the world that suits him." In addition, since he was someone who'd experienced tragedy, it's quite natural for him to desire a custom gun that wasn't mass-produced and harbored performance matching his own skill.
Leon has fought many battles and is still active somewhere.
He himself made the "DE.50AE 10in Barrel Leon Custom" as part of his collection.
He hoped this, the most powerful handgun in human history, would forever slumber in his drawer.
Never to be fired at Zombies again...
Here's how Leon ordered the custom from the gunsmith.
● Long steel barrel and slide -> ■ Change to stainless steel long barrel and slide
Steel barrels and slides are vulnerable to rust, and if maintenance is neglected, they become useless in times of emergency. Change to "hard chrome stainless steel" in consideration of weight balance and being maintenance-free.
● Wood-type shooting grip -> ■ Change to black rubber coated type shooting grip
When a person's tense, their palms sweat... Therefore by putting a "rubber coating" on the surface of the grip and applying a special surface treatment, it'll definitely fit in the palm of the hand and contribute as a non-slip that receives a stronger recoil without absorbing some moisture.
● R.P.D. Special Medallion -> ■ R.P.D. Special Medallion, partial color change
The "incident" happened before he was assigned to the R.P.D., but he has a fondness for the R.P.D. He always keeps himself calm and collected with a reminder to respond cooly under any circumstances, and made some arrangements to add a blue accent as a one-point custom.
● Fully adjustable rear sight -> ■ Change to combat rear sight
In order to avoid the diffusion of reflected light disturbing the field of view during sighting as much as possible, it's possible to reliably perform sighting by adopting a polyhedral structure in terms of design. Moreover, with a deep knowledge of guns he has abolished all adjustable functions and made it compact based on the recent trendy Novak type, a compact lens. Data supported by combat experience is also fully fed back.
● Front Sight Height -> ■ Change to Delta Front Sight
Due to the change to the "combat rear sight", the front sight has also been changed to a more intimate shape.
By using a delta type that matches the edges of the rear sight, a sharp and clear sight picture can be obtained.
● Normal safety lever -> ■ Change to L-shaped custom safety lever
Due to its shape, a normal Desert Eagle's safety lever is easy to use when switched to "firing" from "safety", but hard to do it from "safety" to "firing." This is a design he himself made, realized in order to reflect a "safety lever that's easy to apply and reverse." By arranging it with the initial letter "L" of his own name <Leon> as a motif, it's an excellent product that achieves both design and function aspects.
● Wood color wooden gun case -> ■ Change to black-type wooden gun case
Wooden gun cases are best suited for storage and have advantages over plastic cases that have become popular these days. Although plastic and aluminum cases are lightweight and sturdy, they don't "breathe" themselves. In the case of wood "breathing", the wood itself breathes to delicately control humidity and external room temperature to maintain the optimal preserving environment for guns.
Leon S. Kennedy
On September 29th 1998, he was assigned to the Raccoon Police Department as a rookie police officer, but he faced that horrible tragedy...
Then he later escaped from Raccoon City. 10 years have already passed since he miraculously survived and he's now active as an agent of the United States. Leon's constantly on edge in his role as an agent, so there are times he can relax and take a break. At such times, he always cracks open a desk drawer in his room.
There are two special boxes in there...
He'd occasionally look at them, bringing back old memories. That abominable tragedy! A desperate attempt to escape! "Here are some trusty pals...", in one hand, the sight of them calms him down while cleansing his old memories, and at the same time stirring up a new fighting instinct. When opening one of the boxes, a brown wooden box, inside is the "Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Custom" with a sheathed dual-tone body, a handgun nicknamed a "Hand Cannon" and chambered for the world's most powerful .50 AE (Action Express) bullets.
When squeezing it after a long time, the gun's weight comes through... When he closes his eyes, he relives his memories of the past... And this Hand Cannon has killed many powerful foes. The weight of the gun makes those memories clearer. The gun itself has accrued considerable wounds over the passage of time. Even though the steel barrel was meticulously cared for, the ridges are still faintly tarnished. The wooden grip's also thoroughly worn-out due to the scars of fierce battles being dug deep into it. Just looking at it makes him forget how much time has passed. He can return to his senses by closing the lid on the wooden box.
This brown wooden box is just a reproduction. As the original has disappeared, he remade it based on his memories of the time. A new wooden box untethered to the past may have played a role in severing his memories of that time.
—WHY WAS HE SO PARTICULAR?--
He wanted to keep the "familiar gun" he survived that tragedy with, as a personal collection. He didn't want to say farewell to his "trusty pal." That was his state of mind. Next to the brown wooden box was another, a black box. Inside was the "Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Barrel Chrome Stainless Leon Custom", covered in a body of smoky oxidized silver that sparkled when he opened it. The duo looked like two peas in a pod, but something was definitely different!
To acquire a custom gun for his personal use, he had put in a request with a gunsmith for a special model to bring back his "reliable buddy" in a modern fashion. By not only remaking it but also refining areas where he recalled feeling discomfort or defects in his combat experiences, they produced a "Custom Desert Eagle" surpassing the "most powerful in the world" for the purpose of combat deployment that may come sometime soon.
Though he didn't know anything about it at the time, he'd used a gun supplied by the "R.P.D.", but it's also true its low performance allowed Leon to have already mastered it.
—TIME HAS PASSED SINCE THEN--
It's natural for someone who has matured further to want to have the "most powerful gun in the world that suits him." In addition, since he was someone who'd experienced tragedy, it's quite natural for him to desire a custom gun that wasn't mass-produced and harbored performance matching his own skill.
Leon has fought many battles and is still active somewhere.
He himself made the "DE.50AE 10in Barrel Leon Custom" as part of his collection.
He hoped this, the most powerful handgun in human history, would forever slumber in his drawer.
Never to be fired at Zombies again...
Here's how Leon ordered the custom from the gunsmith.
● Long steel barrel and slide -> ■ Change to stainless steel long barrel and slide
Steel barrels and slides are vulnerable to rust, and if maintenance is neglected, they become useless in times of emergency. Change to "hard chrome stainless steel" in consideration of weight balance and being maintenance-free.
● Wood-type shooting grip -> ■ Change to black rubber coated type shooting grip
When a person's tense, their palms sweat... Therefore by putting a "rubber coating" on the surface of the grip and applying a special surface treatment, it'll definitely fit in the palm of the hand and contribute as a non-slip that receives a stronger recoil without absorbing some moisture.
● R.P.D. Special Medallion -> ■ R.P.D. Special Medallion, partial color change
The "incident" happened before he was assigned to the R.P.D., but he has a fondness for the R.P.D. He always keeps himself calm and collected with a reminder to respond cooly under any circumstances, and made some arrangements to add a blue accent as a one-point custom.
● Fully adjustable rear sight -> ■ Change to combat rear sight
In order to avoid the diffusion of reflected light disturbing the field of view during sighting as much as possible, it's possible to reliably perform sighting by adopting a polyhedral structure in terms of design. Moreover, with a deep knowledge of guns he has abolished all adjustable functions and made it compact based on the recent trendy Novak type, a compact lens. Data supported by combat experience is also fully fed back.
● Front Sight Height -> ■ Change to Delta Front Sight
Due to the change to the "combat rear sight", the front sight has also been changed to a more intimate shape.
By using a delta type that matches the edges of the rear sight, a sharp and clear sight picture can be obtained.
● Normal safety lever -> ■ Change to L-shaped custom safety lever
Due to its shape, a normal Desert Eagle's safety lever is easy to use when switched to "firing" from "safety", but hard to do it from "safety" to "firing." This is a design he himself made, realized in order to reflect a "safety lever that's easy to apply and reverse." By arranging it with the initial letter "L" of his own name <Leon> as a motif, it's an excellent product that achieves both design and function aspects.
● Wood color wooden gun case -> ■ Change to black-type wooden gun case
Wooden gun cases are best suited for storage and have advantages over plastic cases that have become popular these days. Although plastic and aluminum cases are lightweight and sturdy, they don't "breathe" themselves. In the case of wood "breathing", the wood itself breathes to delicately control humidity and external room temperature to maintain the optimal preserving environment for guns.
GAS BLOWBACK / DESERT EAGLE .50AE LEON CUSTOM
In producing the "Leon Custom" this time, the points that have evolved from the old type "BIOHAZARD/Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Barrel" are as follows.
1) Impact on your hand and wrist! Perfectly equipped with the current model <high kick blow back engine>!
2) Equipped with a new die and realistically reproduced <10in barrel> equipment.
3) <Chrome stainless plating> is used for the frame, slide and barrel and produces a strong texture!
4) Die-cast integrated <hard chrome plated magazine> with outstanding thermal efficiency.
5) The front sights are a sharp <delta front sight> and the rear sight's a large fixed type of <combat rear sight>.
6) Ergonomically designed <rubber type shooting grip>. Of course, an <R.P.D. Medallion> is attached with a new dark blue color.
7) Serial number included with <wooden matte black gun case>.
These are the new points! This is a gorgeous model commemorating the "10th Anniversary collaboration" between CAPCOM X Tokyo Marui.
After numerous meetings with CAPCOM's side of the table, based upon an idea of a spin-off from "What if Leon brought back the 10in after that incident?", this 10in Leon Custom was planned!
Based on the Desert Eagle, which has evolved in various parts from its predecessor, every detail was reviewed in order to make it a higher-spec gas blowback. Among them, there's been a major improvement in the "amazing recoil generating kicking blowback", which wasn't yet installed at the time the previous products, the "BIO Desert Series", were released. Later on, the <high-kick blowback> was developed for the evolution of various gas blowback models and can now be installed in the BIO Desert Series.
The surface finish has also evolved, with the same <hard chrome stainless steel plating> used on the latest stainless steel models, and the dull luster of this finish is worthy of a "next generation of the BIO Desert."
The BIO Desert Series has been further enhanced, and achieved a total revival with its "most powerful recoil" and "shining body."
On top of his desk is a single drawing notebook...
Before he asked the gunsmith to make the gun, he'd drawn rough sketches of the gun he had in mind.
There were a lot of visual illustrations in the notebook before they were made into something tangible, for example,
the "Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Full Barrel Custom", "High-Capacity Base Strike Gun", and the "Anti-Zombie Use High-Speed Bullet Spec P226R"----etc.
It's interesting to note he well thought-out a variety of guns, he wasn't limited to the Desert Eagle.
Perhaps a day will come where he asks the gunsmith to make them...
DESERT EAGLE 10IN FULL BARREL CUSTOM
The barrel extended to the slide width is now equipped with the popular 20mm Picatinny rail on the top surface.
It's made more front-heavy for easier continuous shooting.
HIGH-CAPACITY GOVERNMENT STRIKE FACE CUSTOM
With a strike face designed for close-quarters combat, the hook under the magazine's movable for fighting and also helps prevent the magazine from falling out.
SIG P226R COMPETITION CUSTOM
By making the whole thing larger, it responds to the recoil of high-speed bullets. You can see the attention to detail in the beavertail, sights, etc. He always seems to be keep anti-Zombie matters in consideration.
In producing the "Leon Custom" this time, the points that have evolved from the old type "BIOHAZARD/Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Barrel" are as follows.
1) Impact on your hand and wrist! Perfectly equipped with the current model <high kick blow back engine>!
2) Equipped with a new die and realistically reproduced <10in barrel> equipment.
3) <Chrome stainless plating> is used for the frame, slide and barrel and produces a strong texture!
4) Die-cast integrated <hard chrome plated magazine> with outstanding thermal efficiency.
5) The front sights are a sharp <delta front sight> and the rear sight's a large fixed type of <combat rear sight>.
6) Ergonomically designed <rubber type shooting grip>. Of course, an <R.P.D. Medallion> is attached with a new dark blue color.
7) Serial number included with <wooden matte black gun case>.
These are the new points! This is a gorgeous model commemorating the "10th Anniversary collaboration" between CAPCOM X Tokyo Marui.
After numerous meetings with CAPCOM's side of the table, based upon an idea of a spin-off from "What if Leon brought back the 10in after that incident?", this 10in Leon Custom was planned!
Based on the Desert Eagle, which has evolved in various parts from its predecessor, every detail was reviewed in order to make it a higher-spec gas blowback. Among them, there's been a major improvement in the "amazing recoil generating kicking blowback", which wasn't yet installed at the time the previous products, the "BIO Desert Series", were released. Later on, the <high-kick blowback> was developed for the evolution of various gas blowback models and can now be installed in the BIO Desert Series.
The surface finish has also evolved, with the same <hard chrome stainless steel plating> used on the latest stainless steel models, and the dull luster of this finish is worthy of a "next generation of the BIO Desert."
The BIO Desert Series has been further enhanced, and achieved a total revival with its "most powerful recoil" and "shining body."
On top of his desk is a single drawing notebook...
Before he asked the gunsmith to make the gun, he'd drawn rough sketches of the gun he had in mind.
There were a lot of visual illustrations in the notebook before they were made into something tangible, for example,
the "Desert Eagle .50AE 10in Full Barrel Custom", "High-Capacity Base Strike Gun", and the "Anti-Zombie Use High-Speed Bullet Spec P226R"----etc.
It's interesting to note he well thought-out a variety of guns, he wasn't limited to the Desert Eagle.
Perhaps a day will come where he asks the gunsmith to make them...
DESERT EAGLE 10IN FULL BARREL CUSTOM
The barrel extended to the slide width is now equipped with the popular 20mm Picatinny rail on the top surface.
It's made more front-heavy for easier continuous shooting.
HIGH-CAPACITY GOVERNMENT STRIKE FACE CUSTOM
With a strike face designed for close-quarters combat, the hook under the magazine's movable for fighting and also helps prevent the magazine from falling out.
SIG P226R COMPETITION CUSTOM
By making the whole thing larger, it responds to the recoil of high-speed bullets. You can see the attention to detail in the beavertail, sights, etc. He always seems to be keep anti-Zombie matters in consideration.