Forster Co-Ax Press (and how it works ...)

      This is the Forster Co-Ax press.   You
can see how the dies are inserted from the
front, without threading them into the press.

      The Forster Co-Ax press has been around for decades.   I've found that most shooters that use them are impressed (almost fanatical) about how well this press performs.   Most owners of this press agree that its leverage is equal to (or greater than) the popular RCBS Rockchucker.   This Forster Co-Ax press has earned a great reputation, and it's a top choice for experienced shooters.

      This press moves the shell casing upward using an adjustable shellholder on a movable lower casting.   It travels up against a stationary casting.   Unlike a conventional press, the dies are not threaded into this press.   The dies “slip” into a slot that's milled into the upper casting, and they are held in place by their locking collar.

      This shows the top of the Forster press
being lowered into contact with the original shellholder plate.

      This shows the Co-Ax press when the handle is in the full down position with the Belted Magnum Collet Resizing Die installed.   The large rim on the lower part of this die contacts the shellholder assembly before the press comes to a complete stop.   This prevents the press from using its maximum leverage.   The collet die is positioned a bit too low to get maximum leverage with this particular type of press.   However, there is a simple remedy.

      While it is difficult to see, the base of our collet die contacts two button head bolts.   This condition can be improved by switching from the original floating shellholder adapter to the optional Forster shellholder adapter.

      Forster makes this inexpensive Shellholder Adapter that allows their Co-Ax press to use conventional shellholders just like other reloading presses.   I've had several customers report that this accessory makes their Forster Coax press become 100% compatible with our collet die.