Forester coax or MEC

[ntsqd]

I just yesterday bought a new Co-Ax off of ebay. The shop had 6 of them at the time. Paid less than what a used one just sold for here. There's been a different vendor on ebay with them listed for over $600. I'm not normally an ebay purchaser, but I happened to need some OEM parts for a 408ci engine build & couldn't find them anywhere else and since I was there.....

I considered the M-Press, but didn't like how it used die blocks rather than the much more common lock rings. I'm also not a fan of FA's apparent MO of copying other mfg's products with just enough tweaks to keep them out of trouble.

 

[marchboom]

I like it a lot, it is very good quality, heavier than the Forster press, nothing but great for me. The dies and shell holder floats, changing dies is as fast as moving a Turret head, the primer catch is very clean and I have heard will hold around 100 spent primers. The only thing is it doesn't have a primer seater, I purchased the Frankford Hand primer and glad I did, it is adjustable for seating depth. The only issue you will have is with Hornady Match grade adjustable seating die hitting the handle, Redding adjustable Micro seating dies fit fine, the Forster Ultra Micro Seating die is fatter than normal dies and require some adjustments to make it work. That is the only bad thing I can say about the press. Others do not like having to purchase the die blocks, bit with the Forster you will need to purchase the Forster rings to make it work as designed.

Other manufacturer's lock rings work fine in my Co-Ax press. IMO, using the die blocks just adds unnecessary additional cost and one more thing that might cause die misalignment. FA could have made the die installation method the same as Forster (unless it's patented). I think they just designed a way to make more money by mandating that a die block is used for every die.

But what do I know?

 

[Kmccord]

It doesn't cause die misalignment, not for me anyways. My biggest problem with Forster is they are rarely in stock, I had been waiting since June of this year and had given up when I noticed, in November, Midway had an expected date of 12/26. At that point I said heck with it and got the Frankford Arsenal. Looking at Midway, it is out of stock and expected date is past due.

 

[rickjoty]

I love my Co-Ax. So quick to change dies I don't mind making one complete round jut because I can. Some mfr's die rings work with it some not so well as they fit too tight. Just buy a bag of Forster rings and you are good to go. Regarding the lack of a primer seater, well of course the Co-Ax has one, just not in-line. It is a bit of a hassle when changing brass or SRP to LRP. But, I found I was not good at the "feel" with a hand press. The Forster, when set up, gives you perfect depth every time.

 

[willfrye027]

I like it a lot, it is very good quality, heavier than the Forster press, nothing but great for me. The dies and shell holder floats, changing dies is as fast as moving a Turret head, the primer catch is very clean and I have heard will hold around 100 spent primers. The only thing is it doesn't have a primer seater, I purchased the Frankford Hand primer and glad I did, it is adjustable for seating depth. The only issue you will have is with Hornady Match grade adjustable seating die hitting the handle, Redding adjustable Micro seating dies fit fine, the Forster Ultra Micro Seating die is fatter than normal dies and require some adjustments to make it work. That is the only bad thing I can say about the press. Others do not like having to purchase the die blocks, bit with the Forster you will need to purchase the Forster rings to make it work as designed.

I ended up buying one at the sale price. I've been waiting for a Forster for months but there's no end in sight. Couldn't find the MEC in stock either. I've been sharing equipment with my uncle and ready to have my own setup finally. I'll post up how it works, and if the Forster ends up shipping I'll compare them directly

 

[gruising]

Been reloading for almost 50 years. Tried about every brand of press out there. Redding, RCBS. Ponsness Warren, Hollywood, CH4D, Hornady and even custom made. Bought a Co-Ax a few years ago and will never let it go. As long as you are not into super long rounds (I load 338 Lapua on mine) this is a gem. Very good leverage, maybe the best. Super high quality materials and build. Best single stage press out there I think.

 

[8x68s]

"Patience, laddies, patience! Everybody's in such a hurry these days", sez the old guy... LOL! Tried many but I'm partial to the Forster line and have been for years. Redding for wildcat dies...

 

[HOCOMO Hunter]

I've had my Mec for about 2 yrs now and love it aclose friend of mine runs the co-ax both are great presses. Both have some cons, you can't prime on the mec but i prefer to prime separately anyway and the co ax has some issues with certain micro seater stems. You can't go wrong either way

 

[Bang4theBuck]

My only experience woth the Co-Ax was when I helped a friend get set up up loading. I dont care for the feature that forces you to use only certain types (thicknesses) of die lock rings. For as many cartridges as I load for, the cost of the rings and effort of getting them all reset just isn't worth it to me. I have been using the MEC for about 1.5 years, and I love it. I get very very low runout on all of my reloading processes which is the single biggest indicator of quality in a press. The press is very smooth, and well-built. I think both are great presses that will serve you equally for a long time. Personally, IM NOT a fan of having wait and search and wait amd search for something when there are equivalents out there.

 

[ntsqd]

I guess if I run into that problem I'll just turn the lock rings thinner until they do fit. I'm keeping the RC on an Inline plate, so I won't need to re-set ALL of the dies. Some calibers won't merit the effort.

 

[rickjoty]

Ok so the cost of the rings: $7.00 ea or $65 for 12. That does not seem like a problem to me. I would not purchase a die because it was $7 cheaper. Then I like the clamp style Forster ring anyway so I was happy to replace all of my RCBS rings because I didn't like the set screw lock. My Whidden rings work fine. My Lee rings are just a little tight so it limits the "float" but they work and I have not changed them. It looks like I put Forster rings on my Redding dies but I don't remember why. Once you change out the rings they will work with other loaders. The only thing I don't know is any depth change that would be necessary if you want to switch back and forth to different loaders. The Forster indexes off the top of the die ring while others index off the bottom. But, changing loaders back and forth for the same cartridge seems very unlikely to me.

 

[md66948]

MEC with Inline Fabrication Mount.

 

[willfrye027]

Update on the Frankford Arsenal M press:

sized the first case today and the shell holder assembly bent. It stripped the case head/rim and now the case is stuck in my die. It's being returned. I'm not too M-pressed to say the least!!

 

[Kmccord]

Did you use the correct setting for the case? I have never had an issue with a case popping out of the shell holder with a lubed case in the die.