[Big Bird]

I had a coax and recently sold it. I had an older model with the small yoke and clearance of the larger die sets I was using including Forsters with ultra micrometer seater dies was a no-go. The company offered to upgrade my press with a new handle for $88 plus shipping both ways! Hornady, Dillon or RCBS would have replaced it for free. The shellholder on the coax is known to bend and bind with use and Forster will be happy to sell you a $20 repair part they will not warranty it. There are aftermarket workarounds but you will pay $30 for that replacement part. Its also a tinkerers press meaning you don't just generally plunk a shell in the shellholder....there are two rods that must be adjusted from the bottom to switch cartridges--assuming they have different size case heads. I found I preferred the simplicity of just popping in a shellholder like my Rockchucker.

I ended up with a MEC Marksman--MEC is a long time producer of excellent shotshell reloaders. I have personal experience with their loaders and their excellent customer service. The Marksman accomplishes the same thing as a Forster Coax by having a floating shell holder on the ram instead of at the lock ring and I installed a Hornady Lock-n-load adaptor and now use lock-n-load bushings on all my dies which makes changing dies as easy as a coax for about the same price as a Forster lock ring... Runnout on my Mec has been as good or better than my old Coax. Its also less expensive by at least $100

 

[daboone]

Crockett opinions about comparison of his press and the CO-AX deserves some follow up based on my opinions.:duel:

I'm not looking for a pissing match. Just want to share why I love my CO-AX. I'm positive either presses will make their owner proud.

1) The linkage hasn't been an obstacle or an interference for me.

2 & 3) The CO-AX was designed to "wiggle" allow for the die and case to have coincident axes.

4) The CO-AX tube can also be routed via a tube into a bottle. No mess either.

5) Both presses are 100% Made in the USA.

6) I got my old B2 Bonanza CO-AX used and its never required any service or repairs. But I admit Dillon's service is the best as I have need replacement parts for my 550.

7) Midway's rating is 5 Stars

8) Ergonomics is a matter of opinion. The over head operation hasn't hindered or exacerbated my 71yo fingers, wrist, elbow or shoulder. Indeed it seem as comfortable to use as my 550. I do have arthritis.

9) I can keep the next case or bullet close to the ram. Feeding cases is restricted till the ram is all the way down to allow the shellplates to open.

10) Yep your press can be operated that way. I had a Lee turret once but I prefer batch handloading for control until I need the 550 for quantity. Opinions are base on preference.

11) Slipping a die in and out of the CO-AX is simple and easy. Storage of dies in the box keeps them from attracting dust and require less space. Turrets are expensive and take up more space. I'm down to 3 benches and an have entire bedroom devote to reloading and still want more storage space.

12) The quality and stability of the CO-AX is at the very least equal to yours.

13) Yep each primer is handled on the CO-AX press. I'll quote Forster on this.
" The primer seater design is engineered with such precision that no excessive tolerance or “slop” is required in any of the mating parts. The primer post in the Primer Seater Assembly moves freely in its channel with minimal clearance. This extremely tight tolerance delivers remarkably consistent seating depth, time after time. Regardless of the variation in the dimension of the case rim or the amount of force used in seating the primer, with the Forster Products Co-Ax Press, it is impossible to crush a primer or vary the seating depth."

14) The CO-Ax shellplates accommodates a large cross section of calibers so this is a step that is rarely required. Changing them isn't complicated or time consuming. The CO-AX also has a shellholder adapter if that is important. You simple don't need the expense of large collection of caliber specific shellholders or require swapping them out between most calipers.

Again I'm not dissing Crockett's logic just want to respond with mine. :hugs:

 

[crockett]

The co-ax comes with an enclosed primer catch system.

It is also made in the USA.

I can’t say I have ever needed their customer service so I’m not sure about this one but Dillon has set the bar pretty high for everyone.

It has 5 stars from midway reviewers and more of them at that.

Not sure about 8&9 as I don’t have the press mounted high enough that I have to life my arm that high, even while reloading sitting. The press also has enough leverage you can use the short handle for just about everything. You can also get you hand close enough to squish your fingers if you want to, the handle is only 3/4” wide and swings in a arc, as large gn as you hand is not in the way of the handles path you can have it as close as you want.

A turret press is as much of a “semi progressive” as a 550 is not a “true progressive”, a progressive can perform operations on a number of cases using a number of dies with a single stroke.

The shell holders for the co-ax are somewhat universal, you can see how fast caliber changes can be done in the video I posted in #7. You couldn’t do what is shown in #7 as fast with a turret even if all the dies were installed in the same turret.

If you stand, you have to bend down in order to operate the press, if you sit in-front of it, you have to raise your arm above the shoulder height. I had ergonomics classes back in college, this design would be a no-go in any ISO certified manufacturing plant in Germany because it will wear down workers / users.

I put "semi progressive" into quotation mark for a reason, never claimed it to be truly progressive, and you know that. I still turn the turret faster than you will switch dies back and forth. And don't tell be you keep 3 or 4 dies in your other hand at all the times.

And who changes calibers with every case? Nobody.

I can even see how your hand hits the frame when entering a new case. That gets hold aver a couple hundred cases. Not enough room to work.

8:21 to 8:41 one fully loaded round. Try that with the co-ax for an hour switching dies. Good luck with the powder hopper on that press / having to pull out the case for an externally mounted hopper.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3R7PkPklUM

 

[crockett]

12) The quality and stability of the CO-AX is at the very least equal to yours.

That right there tells me that you have never seriously worked on a T-7. The co-ax is much lighter, has much more play in it in every part (by design), the dies rides up and down with every pull, it also puts the force on the lock ring and not the threads of the dies (design failure in my book right there).

I agree that you can save money on shell holders, but I can use Redding Competition shell holders for precision work on an entirely different level.

 

[norton]

The two single stage presses I have on my bench are the RCBS Rockchucker (new in 1968) and a Lee Classic Cast. The Lee has a better spent primer catch system (my Rockchucker is of the, spent primers rolling around on the floor, vintage). Both are as hefty as I have ever needed.

The Lee Classic is probably a better "value", RCBS is, well, RCBS, solid as a rock with CS that rivals Dillon.

Yep, the rock chucker is a tank. And yes, spent primers are about 75% caught in the tray, the rest end up on the floor. Spent primers give the cat something to bat around.
Small primers seem to be the culprit. I don't have as many missed tray used primers in large primer size.

 

[daboone]

OK thanks for your corrections and expert opinions. I only tried to express my personal experience. I keep dies in their case until the next one is required. If I want to increase speed and quantity I go to the 550. I thought I said calibers not cases but if so I stand corrected.

Edited to add: I have reloaded on a friends T7 but I still like my CO-AX better. I am not dissing your choices or rational as they sound perfect for you. I just wanted to express mine.

 

[Big Bird]

If your press is hard to operate standing get an Inline Fabrication Mount and raise it up off the bench as much as 9". Buy the quick change version like I have and a dedicated plate for every press you own and some storage mounts and you'll be able to change presses on the mount in less than a minute and have some storage options for the presses not in use.

I know lots of people like their coax presses. I just got tired of having to use my RCBs when I wanted to load my Lott or Rigby ammo or use the Ultra seater dies for something like my .270 WInchester. I know that's a moot point with the new models being sold and I know some of you say you have no trouble with the yoke on your old models but I just have to say is if it wasn't an issue why did Forster redesign the press and make the yokes longer? Obviously.... It just kind of irked me they wanted $88 plus shipping both ways for a stupid yoke... Plus my shellholder was constantly bending and binding and needed to be disassembled and hammered flat... So I punted. Sold it and the accessories and got enough from the sale to fund the MEC press.. It has the same advantages of the floating dies as the COAX but accomplishes it with a standard shell holder.... Shellholders are cheap...you can buy a Lee set that will cover 99% of the calibers out there for less than $20.

I don't prime my shells on a SS press. I do it with a hand priming tool. I have three...a Sinclair for really precision stuff, a Hornady Hand Primer that gets the bulk of my work and a new Lee Auto Prime which I bought with a gift card at Cabelas and like most Lee stuff its surprisingly good though it looks cheap. The Sinclair tool uses the same Lee auto prime shell holders so I get double duty out of that $16 investment...wooo hooo! Of course the Dillon 550 priming station works fine for my progressive loads. Really, seating a primer isn't rocket science. As long as its seated all the way back in the primer pocket what else do you expect your primer system to do? I used the system on the Coax a few times but it was too slow and frankly tedious to adjust. So I basically left it set for 30-06 size case heads which covers most of my reloading and left it alone or went to another system for different calibers.

Nobody is in a pissing match here. Just sharing information. Not everyone has to validate your systems and if they don't it doesn't mean you are a lesser man or have garbage. If it works for you....by all means keep doing it!

I've never been a turret press fan but there are people who swear by them and if that's what floats your boat I salute you. Clearly you can be successful reloading on all kinds of presses....Coax, Redding Turrets, 45 year old Rockchuckers... Its all good.

If you simply explain why you use what you use there's nothing to debate...

 

[Big Bird]

BTW, I can't say enough about these folks and their products.

https://inlinefabrication.com/

I bought a QD Plate for my MEC Marksman and had a small interference problem with mounting the press to the plate...the mounting holes needed to be about 1/8" further forward on the plate for it to clear a bolthead on the back of the press. I called the 800 number after hours and left a message. The next day the owner called me back and profusely thanked me for pointing this out. Said he had the same issue when he tried to mount the plate in the press.... Gave me a quick workaround...change the hex bolt to a cap head screw on the back of the press and it would easily clear. Offered to send me a replacement but said he would change the CNC bolt pattern on future models and offered to send a replacement...the cap head solution worked perfectly...had one in my spare bolt jar....and it saved me the trouble of changing the shell plates. But his response was awesome and appreciated.

If you own a Dillon and are considering a strong mount---by the Inline model instead...trust me!

 

[dudel]

8:21 to 8:41 one fully loaded round. Try that with the co-ax for an hour switching dies. Good luck with the powder hopper on that press / having to pull out the case for an externally mounted hopper.

But you wouldn't load with a coax that way (or any other single stage). You would do 100 sizing operations, then 100 primer seatings (I do that off press with a Lee AutoPrimer), followed by 100 flare/dump (I use a Dillon powder dump on my RockChucker - you might be able to use a Dillon dump on the CoAx as well, depends on yoke clearance.), followed by 100 seat/crimp. Then take the 100 and divide by elapsed time. I bet you're close, maybe even a bit quicker than a turret. You're trading shell movement with turret moving. A case kicker is used in sizing and seat/crimp operations, so the shell doesn't get handled as much as one might expect.

 

[ThomasM4]

It all just really depends on how you are wanting to use the press. That includes what accessories you might be using with the press now and possibly in the future. Let the job dictate the tools not the tools dictate the job.

 

[The Kingfish]

I considered The RCBS Rockchucker, The Forster Coax and the Redding T7 Turret. I think any of those three could be considered the best but I went with the Redding because like a Ruger revolver, it was so damn heavy duty looking. Haven't been disappointed.

 

[crockett]

But you wouldn't load with a coax that way (or any other single stage). You would do 100 sizing operations, then 100 primer seatings (I do that off press with a Lee AutoPrimer), followed by 100 flare/dump (I use a Dillon powder dump on my RockChucker - you might be able to use a Dillon dump on the CoAx as well, depends on yoke clearance.), followed by 100 seat/crimp. Then take the 100 and divide by elapsed time. I bet you're close, maybe even a bit quicker than a turret. You're trading shell movement with turret moving. A case kicker is used in sizing and seat/crimp operations, so the shell doesn't get handled as much as one might expect.

I didn't start the idea of loading full cases / switching dies for every operation on the co-ax.

Afaik there is no dump for the co-ax, but surely for the T-7.

Having to re-enter the same cases again and again gets older than turning a turret IMO. The reality is, a turret at least provides you with this option, the co-ax doesn't.

 

[crockett]

If your press is hard to operate standing get an Inline Fabrication Mount and raise it up off the bench as much as 9". Buy the quick change version like I have and a dedicated plate for every press you own and some storage mounts and you'll be able to change presses on the mount in less than a minute and have some storage options for the presses not in use.

I know lots of people like their coax presses. I just got tired of having to use my RCBs when I wanted to load my Lott or Rigby ammo or use the Ultra seater dies for something like my .270 WInchester. I know that's a moot point with the new models being sold and I know some of you say you have no trouble with the yoke on your old models but I just have to say is if it wasn't an issue why did Forster redesign the press and make the yokes longer? Obviously.... It just kind of irked me they wanted $88 plus shipping both ways for a stupid yoke... Plus my shellholder was constantly bending and binding and needed to be disassembled and hammered flat... So I punted. Sold it and the accessories and got enough from the sale to fund the MEC press.. It has the same advantages of the floating dies as the COAX but accomplishes it with a standard shell holder.... Shellholders are cheap...you can buy a Lee set that will cover 99% of the calibers out there for less than $20.

I don't prime my shells on a SS press. I do it with a hand priming tool. I have three...a Sinclair for really precision stuff, a Hornady Hand Primer that gets the bulk of my work and a new Lee Auto Prime which I bought with a gift card at Cabelas and like most Lee stuff its surprisingly good though it looks cheap. The Sinclair tool uses the same Lee auto prime shell holders so I get double duty out of that $16 investment...wooo hooo! Of course the Dillon 550 priming station works fine for my progressive loads. Really, seating a primer isn't rocket science. As long as its seated all the way back in the primer pocket what else do you expect your primer system to do? I used the system on the Coax a few times but it was too slow and frankly tedious to adjust. So I basically left it set for 30-06 size case heads which covers most of my reloading and left it alone or went to another system for different calibers.

Nobody is in a pissing match here. Just sharing information. Not everyone has to validate your systems and if they don't it doesn't mean you are a lesser man or have garbage. If it works for you....by all means keep doing it!

I've never been a turret press fan but there are people who swear by them and if that's what floats your boat I salute you. Clearly you can be successful reloading on all kinds of presses....Coax, Redding Turrets, 45 year old Rockchuckers... Its all good.

If you simply explain why you use what you use there's nothing to debate...

Especially the Inline Mount raises the co-ax to a point that forces your arm well above your shoulder height. I'd load 100 cases that way and be done for days. I know so many people with shoulder issues.

By the way, the highest Inline Mount is 10" high.

 

[ObiJuan]

.

 

[sig357fan]

just throwing this out there.....

with the advent of wet tumbling and the need to remove primers before hand, consider de-priming.

de-priming is the one chore I do the most on my Lee Classics Cast, I've made up a brass kicker and with the spent primer catch, easy peasy and no mess.

and Norton.....I got no cat....so theres that.......

 

[Big Bird]

Especially the Inline Mount raises the co-ax to a point that forces your arm well above your shoulder height. I'd load 100 cases that way and be done for days. I know so many people with shoulder issues.

By the way, the highest Inline Mount is 10" high.


View attachment 387029

They make them 4" and flush as well... Not everyone requires a geriatric mount!

 

[jmorris]

you might be able to use a Dillon dump on the CoAx as well,

You couldn’t but no one in their right mind would do so anyway.

I still turn the turret faster than you will switch dies back and forth.

If that were a measure of a good press the Lee auto indexing turret would be top shelf.

 

[John Wesley]

Had a Hornady Classic for over thirty years. Replaced it last year with a Hornady Classic Lock-N-Load and love it. Its fast for a SS and along with my RCBS Chargemaster combo dispenser/scale I can really get some reloading done.

 

[crockett]

If that were a measure of a good press the Lee auto indexing turret would be top shelf.

That thing is the biggest pile of crap in my book. Nice studs, top shelf product design.

 

[dkf]

I really like my Lee Classic Cast single stage. It may not be considered the best but it is a solid press. I use it for sizing bullets a lot and sizing a .462" 20+ BHN bullet down at least a cople thou can put stress on the press. Plus I like the hollow ram spent primer setup and priming setup on the press. I prime on the press only, regardless which one I use.