Davis Industries

Davis Industries

Company type	Private
Industry	firearms
Founded	1982;43 years ago (1982)
Defunct	1999;26 years ago (1999)
Fate	Bankrupt
Headquarters	Chino, California , U.S.
Area served	U.S.
Key people	Jim Davis
Products	firearms

Davis Industries was a firearms manufacturer established in 1982 by Jim Davis. ^[1] Davis produced a series of inexpensive handguns, which were sold primarily through pawn shops and marketed towards people with low income. ^[2] The guns were constructed of injection-molded Zamak, a zinc alloy.

Jim Davis had previously been the office manager at Raven Arms, ^[3] established by George Jennings, and was also Jennings' son-in-law. ^[1] As one of the companies connected to Raven Arms, and a maker of Saturday night specials, Davis was described by the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives as one of the "Ring of Fire" companies, a series of companies established around Los Angeles, California, all of which manufactured inexpensive handguns of similar design and all of which were connected to Raven Arms. ^[4]

Davis primarily manufactured and sold pocket pistols and derringers, in .22 Long Rifle, .32 ACP, and .380 ACP.

In 1999, Davis filed for bankruptcy and went out of business in 2001 as a result of a large number of lawsuits being filed by cities and municipalities and wrongful death and personal injury suits. ^{[4] [5]} Cobra Firearms bought the rights and tooling to manufacture and sell firearms from Davis. ^{[6] [5]}

Republic Arms, Inc.

Republic Arms was owned by Jim Davis. ^[7] The company had two products, the Republic Patriot Pistol chambered in .45 ACP, polymer frame, with a 6 round magazine, it was Introduced in 1997. ^[8] Their second product was a holster for their pistol. ^[9] Republic Arms went out of business in 2001. ^[10] Cobra Firearms bought the rights and tooling to manufacture and sell products from Republic Arms. ^[6]

Products

Semiautomatics ^[6]

• Davis P-32 Pistol chambered in .32 ACP, with a six-round magazine, Introduced 1986.

• Davis P-380 Pistol chambered in .380 ACP, with a five-round magazine, Introduced 1991.

Derringers ^[6]

• Davis D-Series Derringers chambered in .22 LR, .22 WMR, .25 ACP, or .32 ACP, with a 2.4 inch barrel, Introduced 1986.
• Davis Big Bore Derringers chambered in .22 WMR, .38 Special, or 9mm, with a 2.75 inch barrel, Introduced 1992.
• Davis Long-Bore Derringers chambered in .22 WMR, .38 Special, or 9mm, with a 3.5 inch barrel, Introduced 1995.

See also

• Arcadia Machine & Tool
• Cobra Firearms
• Jimenez Arms
• Lorcin Engineering Company
• Phoenix Arms
• Raven Arms
• Sundance Industries

References

1. Vinzant, Carol (November 13, 2005). Lawyers, Guns, and Money: One Man's Battle with the Gun Industry. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 119. ISBN   1403966273.
2. "Davis Industries". Violence Policy Center. 2000. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
3. "Hot Guns: Ring of Fire". Frontline. PBS. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
4. Butterfield, Fox (June 24, 1999). "Lawsuits Lead Gun Maker To File for Bankruptcy". New York Times. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
5. The official Gun digest book of guns & prices : rifles, pistols & shotguns. Krause Publications. 2005. p. 340. ISBN   9780896893245.
6. Guns illustrated, 2003 (35th ed.). Krause Publications. 2002. pp. 14 126 177. ISBN   9780873494892.
7. "DEADLY EXCEPTIONS" (PDF). February 2000. p. 18.
8. Guns illustrated, 2000 (32nd ed.). Krause Publications. 1999. p. 156. ISBN   9780873417570.
9. Gun digest, 2001 (32nd ed.). Krause Publications. 2000. p. 118. ISBN   9780873419246.
10. The official Gun digest book of guns & prices : rifles, pistols & shotguns. Krause Publications. 2005. p. 801. ISBN   9780896893245.