For a rifle to shoot accurately, it is common knowledge that rifle components (bolt to receiver) be assembled "square" and the barrel must be of good quality, installed concentrically. However, good shooters know that it is also important that the ammunition is assembled square and concentric. A bullet is nothing more than a "slow pitched" screw, or a better comparison might be a threading tap. Anybody that has done any threading knows that if a tap does not enter a hole squarely, it never straightens or self-trues. In the case of ammunition, if a bullet does not enter a bore squarely, a wobble is induced that cannot help but deter accuracy. To accomplish square bullet seating, we highly recommend Forster/Bonanza "BR" Reloading dies.

Forster/Bonanza has been making their "BR" Reloading die sets for more than 20 years. This patented system of reloading has some clever features that can produce the accurate ammunition we are looking for.

Reloading die sets for rifles consist of a sizing die (either full length or neck sizing) and a seater die. Let's start with the sizing die. While paying particular attention to not over sizing the brass, Bonanza dies have a separate expander button mounted high in the decapping rod assembly. By placing the expander button high on the decapping rod assembly (see drawing), the expanding operation happens with your press handle near the bottom, where your press produces all of its leverage. With the expander button adjusted just below the neck (when the press handle is all the way down) the expanding operation is hardly felt, making sizing much less laborious.

SIZER DIE PARTS Spindle Lock Nut ..A-10 Spindle Bushing ...B-10 Sizer Die Body .....C-10 Spindle ..................D-10 Expander Button ...E-10 Die Lock Ring ............G Lock Nut ................H-10 Decapping Pin ............I (S-short, L-long) Coax Washer ......W-10

Now, let's look at the heart of the system, the Bonanza "BR" Seater Die. The Bonanza "BR" Seater Die operates on the same principle as "In Line" hand seating dies which bench rest and target reloaders use. By looking at the drawing and picture of the "BR" die you will see that a spring loaded, floating sleeve (P30) aligns the case and bullet before the seater stem "pushes" the bullet into the case. The P30 seater sleeve is a one piece, reamed tube that resembles your rifle's chamber. Tests have shown that, when using the "BR" seater system, bullet to case alignment is within .002" or less. This figure can be three to four times more when using standard seating dies. Another benefit of the spring loaded seater sleeve P30 is that, while it was probably not intentionally designed to do so, the sleeve acts as a "cushion" to prevent bullet mashes if one doesn't get the bullet in quite the proper location. A nice bonus on the night before the big hunt!

SEATER DIE PARTS Bullet Seating Stem ....J-30 Lock Nut .......................K-30 Die Body ......................L-30 Return Spring ..............M-30 Retainer Ring ...............N-30 Sleeve ..........................O-30 Die Sliding Chamber ..P-30 Die Lock Ring ...................G (Parts J, K, L, O & P vary with caliber)

Forster/Bonanza's patent has recently expired on the "BR" dies, and Redding has adopted many of the Bonanza features in their dies. RCBS is also using In Line seating systems in their fancy competition dies. Around here, the Bonanza "BR" Reloading Die Set has more than proven itself and will remain a favorite!