Frankford Arsenal M-press

[Shankin]

Anyone seen one of these in person? Own one? I’m happy someone else is making a co-ax press other than Forster. Nothing against Forster..... I’d just like to actually be able to own one.

Anywho..... input please.

 

[Rwjeter]

Ordered mine yesterday. Should be in Tuesday. Hella upgrade from my Lee Challenger I'm sure. My buddy has a Forster so maybe we can do a side by side soon.

 

[Shankin]

Please do. And lemme know what you think of it when you get it. I don’t neeeeed another press, but I’ve wanted a co-ax since the beginning. I’m likely going to order one in the next week or two.

Who did you order from?

 

[Rwjeter]

Please do. And lemme know what you think of it when you get it. I don’t neeeeed another press, but I’ve wanted a co-ax since the beginning. I’m likely going to order one in the next week or two.

Who did you order from?

Midway. $249. Been checking for about two weeks to see them in stock. Logged on yesterday and $700 later I've got a new press, magnetospeed V3, and some more Valkyrie mags. It was an expensive morning....

 

[Shankin]

Oh damn....

I guess $249 is a fixed price. That’s what it’s going for everywhere that I’ve seen it. Like I said, I’ll prolly snatch one up in the next week or two, but I’d really like to hear what you think about yours.

 

[Rwjeter]

Yeah. I think so too. I kept hoping Brownells would get it and I could wait for one of their 10% with free shipping coupons.

 

[ram]

You may want to put your hands on one before putting you money down. I have and I wouldn’t take it if was given to me.

 

[47guy]

You may want to put your hands on one before putting you money down. I have and I wouldn’t take it if was given to me.

Why?

 

[Codiekfx400]

A Forster coax is only $70 more. Forster is American made and very proven. Why buy a Frankford Arsenal?

 

[47guy]

That’s all true and I agree but is there something actually wrong with the M press or you just don’t like it for those reasons?

 

[ram]

Why?

The one I saw had a great deal of clearance from the shell platform to the guide columns, and it would actually tilt making the shell centerline no longer colinear with the die.

 

[47guy]

The one I saw had a great deal of clearance from the shell platform to the guide columns, and it would actually tilt making the shell centerline no longer colinear with the die.

Yeah that’s not good...sad I thought this was going to be a decent press

 

[Shankin]

Jeter... have you had a chance to mess with your press yet? What are your thoughts?

 

[Olen_4504]

ive read one report on here about one, and a friend of mine got one. they both had an issue where they had to grind down their sizing dies in order to get enough depth to properly size the case. that seems too coincidental for me

i only played with the frankford for a few minutes, and no official run out data or anything, but based on feel, if a co-ax is a 10. i'd put the frankford at like a 7.5. i like the way it mounts to the bench, and i like the included light. and i like the method of changing the shell holder. but it felt sloppy.

i wouldn't say NO ONE BUY THIS PIECE OF CRAP..... but i'm also not running out and picking one up ASAP.

that's my $0.02

 

[Shankin]

Grind down the sizing die? I’m assuming it’s the bottom portion, nearest the case head, that would normally butt up against the shell holder. Is this correct? If so, that’s a non starter for me. I’d rather get the Forster, and add a $12 led light strip from the electronics parts house.

I hope those cases were the exception, not the norm. I was really hoping this would be a good press.

 

[Olen_4504]

Grind down the sizing die? I’m assuming it’s the bottom portion, nearest the case head, that would normally butt up against the shell holder. Is this correct? If so, that’s a non starter for me. I’d rather get the Forster, and add a $12 led light strip from the electronics parts house.

I hope those cases were the exception, not the norm. I was really hoping this would be a good press.

correct.

 

[Cascade Hemi]

The use of the die mounting block just means you'll be dependent on FA for additional die mounting and none of your mounted dies will fit back in their original boxes. The CoAx is a homerun, the M-Press is a poorly executed facsimile.

 

[Codiekfx400]

Why wouldn’t you just take a belt sander to the shell holder. That is what i do. Seems like a better option than grinding on the die itself.

 

[Olen_4504]

Why wouldn’t you just take a belt sander to the shell holder. That is what i do. Seems like a better option than grinding on the die itself.

you need the shell holder to get closer - not further away.


i think you could put a shim/plate under the shell holder though and accomplish the same thing

 

[Shankin]

Maybe I’m just tired, been doing a lot of driving today, but none of this makes sense to me. Trying to picture it in my head.

Looking at presses that use a standard shell holder, the holder engages the extractor groove on the case, the ram lifts the case/shell holder up until the bottom of the die contacts the shell holder (this is ignoring weather or not you set the die to cam over).

If the shell holder on the M-press is engaging the extractor groove and the die is adjusted so that it’s making contact with the shell holder with the ram fully lifted, what is or isn’t happening that’s keeping the case from being sized properly? I don’t understand why the shell holder would need to be shimmed up, or the die ground down.

I’m not trying to be an ass about this at all. Like I said, I’m probably just tired, but it doesn’t make sense to me. Please help me understand.

 

[Cascade Hemi]

Maybe I’m just tired, been doing a lot of driving today, but none of this makes sense to me. Trying to picture it in my head.

Looking at presses that use a standard shell holder, the holder engages the extractor groove on the case, the ram lifts the case/shell holder up until the bottom of the die contacts the shell holder (this is ignoring weather or not you set the die to cam over).

If the shell holder on the M-press is engaging the extractor groove and the die is adjusted so that it’s making contact with the shell holder with the ram fully lifted, what is or isn’t happening that’s keeping the case from being sized properly? I don’t understand why the shell holder would need to be shimmed up, or the die ground down.

I’m not trying to be an ass about this at all. Like I said, I’m probably just tired, but it doesn’t make sense to me. Please help me understand.

The shell plate is too thick and prevents the case from inserting into the die far enough to push back the case shoulder. Some are suggesting its best to shave the die body to provide more clearance between the die and the shell holder. My opinion is it is better if FA designs the press correctly so end users do not have to modify expensive dies. Just like the die block, FA missed the finer elements of the CoAx with their Chicom ripoff.

 

[Shankin]

Ooooooh ok. That’s what I originally thought. It’s akin to using a Redding comp shell holder @ .010”, or thereabouts, where it won’t bump the shoulder.

This post is the one that confused me.

you need the shell holder to get closer - not further away.


i think you could put a shim/plate under the shell holder though and accomplish the same thing

Thanks for clearing that up for me.

 

[Olen_4504]

Ooooooh ok. That’s what I originally thought. It’s akin to using a Redding comp shell holder @ .010”, or thereabouts, where it won’t bump the shoulder.

This post is the one that confused me.



Thanks for clearing that up for me.

Sorry, I shouldn’t have opened my fat mouth without knowing exactly what was causing the issue. I misunderstood what my buddy said the problem was precisely

 

[Rwjeter]

Jeter... have you had a chance to mess with your press yet? What are your thoughts?

I haven't even had time to pick it up. It's sitting at my dad's shop. I have a quick service call this morning then I'm heading over there for some trigger time. I'll send some pics and initial thoughts.

 

[Rwjeter]

Well, I got as far as unboxing it and plugging in the light before a toddler meltdown crashed my party. I hope to resize some .223 before the end of the week to check if the dies hit the Shell plate. It does have a lot of "float" to the die block. Supposedly they say that helps the case self align with the dies. We'll see. The action feels pretty smooth. Not silk mind you, but much better than my Lee. The light is freaking amazing though. Bright as hell.

 

[Rwjeter]

Well I'm returning it. I didn't have a problem with the sizing die, but I did have clearance issues with the micrometer on the top of my seating die. To get enough clearance for the arm I had to screw the die in so much that it would bottom out on the brass at about half the stroke. I had really high hopes.

 

[Shankin]

Damn. That sucks. I had high hopes for it as well.

 

[Rwjeter]

Damn. That sucks. I had high hopes for it as well.

It might be fine with some other dies. I know those Hornady are pretty tall, but I didn't want to risk it and end up stuck with something I hated. (done that before)

Anyway, the RCBS turret press is on sale at Midway, so I'm going to swap to it. That way all my dies can be set up and ready to roll on a disk. Then I can just turn it when I'm ready to start seating or sizing again. And the priming feature is as plus.

 

[Shankin]

It might be fine with some other dies. I know those Hornady are pretty tall, but I didn't want to risk it and end up stuck with something I hated. (done that before)

Anyway, the RCBS turret press is on sale at Midway, so I'm going to swap to it. That way all my dies can be set up and ready to roll on a disk. Then I can just turn it when I'm ready to start seating or sizing again. And the priming feature is as plus.

This is the route that I went initially, but with the Redding T7. Nothing wrong with it at all..... in fact I really really like it, but I really like the idea of a co-ax too.

 

[milboltnut]

Well I'm returning it. I didn't have a problem with the sizing die, but I did have clearance issues with the micrometer on the top of my seating die. To get enough clearance for the arm I had to screw the die in so much that it would bottom out on the brass at about half the stroke. I had really high hopes. View attachment 7064088

Ummmm, get rid of that Hornady die, they are not the way to go. Get a Forster or Redding seater, they will give plenty of room. Hornady is not a chamber die and leave too much run out.

 

[Conaso]

Hornady is not a "chamber die"? What is a chamber die?

 

[milboltnut]

a chamber die supports the entire case, a Hornady seater only supports the neck.