Davis Warner Infallible

Lore & Background

The Davis Warner Infallible was developed after Warner Arms Co. lost access to the Schwarzlose Model 1908 pistols from Germany. To fill the gap, they had .32 ACP pocket pistols made in the United States in three variations. The front sights and grips were designed to consciously imitate the outline of the Schwarzlose. Unlike the Schwarzlose M1908, the Davis-Warner guns are fairly conventional, striker-fired blowbacks that use a breechblock rather than a slide, as Browning had patented the idea of an auto pistol slide with an integral breechblock.

The pistol had one serious drawback. At the back of the gun, there is a small lever and a push-through pin. If the shooter disassembled the pistol and forgot to turn the lever the right way or forgot to push the pin all the way in, the breechblock would be stopped only by a small projection and could come back in his face. The guns were not 'infallible,' and the company soon went out of business.

Reader's Guide

The Davis Warner Infallible occupies a brief but cautionary place in early 20th-century American firearms history. Its creation was a direct response to supply chain disruptions—when Warner Arms Co. could no longer import the Schwarzlose Model 1908 from Germany, they commissioned domestic production of a .32 ACP pocket pistol that visually echoed the Schwarzlose. The three variations produced show an attempt to maintain market presence, but the design's critical flaw undermined its reliability and safety. The disassembly hazard—where a misaligned lever or incompletely seated pin could allow the breechblock to fly rearward—earned the gun a reputation that contradicted its optimistic name. The trademark 'Blocks the Sear' referred to the safety mechanism, but the real danger lay in reassembly. This flaw, combined with the company's subsequent failure, makes the Infallible a textbook example of how a single engineering oversight can doom a product. Its legacy is that of a well-intentioned but ultimately unsafe design, remembered more for its failure than its Schwarzlose-inspired styling.

Did You Know?

• The Davis Warner Infallible was made in three variations.
• The pistol used a breechblock instead of a slide because Browning had patented the slide design.
• A disassembly error could cause the breechblock to strike the shooter in the face.