MEC press: big problem? **UPDATE**

[Tommie]

My buddy (who’s just getting into reloading) purchased a MEC press. Set it up by the book and took it on the shakedown cruise today. Hornady 30-06 die screwed in fine, got the thing set up right and proceeded to run his first case into the sizing die. Crunch! He lowers the ram, case mouth is tweeked. Then he takes the die out and finds that the zip spindle is bent. It’s like the die is off-center or something. Then he spots the threaded insert. There’s daylight on one side between the top of the press and the insert so the die is crooked and nowhere close to being inline with the ram. He’s already emailed MEC but here comes a long holiday weekend.

Here’s a photo he sent me. Appears that the press wasn’t threaded correctly. Any other possibilities?

 

[Monte F]

Try another insert to see if it is the press or insert that is crooked.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

I had no idea mec made brass reloading equipment. And i also cant believe they have zero qc

 

[Dans40X]

MEC needs to focus their attention to "Low & High brass Hulls" only.

A buddy had worse issues than listed above-total JUNK.

 

[Kracken McGraw]

Wow! Good to know. I figured that Mec would be built like a tank.

 

[LVLAaron]

I just got the same press... It's quite nice and very straight/true.

 

[dickn52]

I had no idea mec made brass reloading equipment. And i also cant believe they have zero qc

Go ahead and believe it. I started shotgun reloading with this company and it was a mess from day one. Ended my reloading shotgun days with a powered Spolar.

 

[Prose]

My MEC is awesome. Sorry to see an issue with the one above.

 

[HTSmith]

I've been a satisfied user of MEC shotgun presses for about 40 years now. Looks like they may have goofed here, but I expect they will make it right.

 

[sdeal5]

My Mec with the floating shell holder has been perfect since day one. Reduced my runout somewhat, and every little bit helps. Sorry to hear you're having probs. I recommended the same unit to a shooting buddy, and he is also very pleased with his. Here's hoping they make things right for you

 

[BoydAllen]

The press is defective, and because of the way that the insert is probably manufactured, it is unlikely that it is the culprit. It is probably the main body casting that is the problem and I think that any reasonable manufacturer would replace the press. Let us know what happens. I advise against band aid fixes. Upon request they should provide a shipping label.

 

[LRPV]

I’ve had one of these presses since they came out. No issues. It’s loaded around 7500 rounds give or take. I’ll take this press over any of the new off the shelf presses available. I don’t care which of the major companies you wanna pick, quality control is lacking these days.

 

[jackson1]

Have you contacted MEC about the problem? They really stand by their shot shell loaders. I own 5 of their shot shell loaders and luckily I live close enough to make the trip to their plant. On several occasions they have fixed or tuned my equipment. Once after I messed up my 9000G. When their rifle/pistol press came out, it was of no interest to me, because of their lack of additional reloading equipment.

 

[Tommie]

**UPDATE*

My friend contacted MEC. Turns out they were aware of some early production units that had this issue. MEC thought all the bad ones had been culled but apparently this one slipped through the cracks. They immediately shipped a replacement press and reimbursed my buddy for the price of a new die set. He says the new press runs like butter.

No manufacturer has a zero failure rate. Bad pieces can happen. It's all about how the company reacts and responds to customer concerns. I think MEC passed with flying colors.

 

[Zero333]

**UPDATE*

My friend contacted MEC. Turns out they were aware of some early production units that had this issue. MEC thought all the bad ones had been culled but apparently this one slipped through the cracks. They immediately shipped a replacement press and reimbursed my buddy for the price of a new die set. He says the new press runs like butter.

No manufacturer has a zero failure rate. Bad pieces can happen. It's all about how the company reacts and responds to customer concerns. I think MEC passed with flying colors.

Thanks for the update...

It's very important for people to call the manufacturer asap if they have a problem with their product.
It's rare for manufacturers of Reloading tools not to take care of their consumers.

 

[Dusty Stevens]

Thats great service

 

[Willow]

I just got the same press... It's quite nice and very straight/true.

Ditto, I'm more than happy with mine, prefer it over the Redding Big Boss II which I had prior.

 

[Tommie]

It's rare for manufacturers of Reloading tools not to take care of their consumers

This is precisely what I told him.
The reloading companies take care of their customers like no other industry I’ve seen. How many times have we heard or read a report of someone receiving a no questions asked replacement of a 20 year old reloading item? It’s an amazing business model.

 

[hogpatrol]

That's good news on the MEC. Like the OP said, stuff happens. Agree with the above post. I bought an OLD used RCBS press off of ebay and there were some parts missing. Called, got a live person on the phone explained my dilemma and asked about buying the parts. Was told, no charge, we'll get them out today. Have had similar experience with Redding.