Forster 223 Remington Bench Rest Seater Die (005861)

Description

This is the standard Bench Rest Seater Die from Forster in .223 Remington, and it's the die a lot of precision reloaders reach for when they want tighter, more consistent ammo without the fuss. What makes it different from a run-of-the-mill seater is the sliding die chamber. Instead of only holding the bullet and case neck, it supports the entire outside diameter of the sized case while the bullet is pressed into place. That full support keeps everything in line during the critical moment when the base of the bullet first meets the case mouth, which is exactly when a lesser die can let a bullet tip and throw off your concentricity.

What Makes the Bench Rest Seater Die Different

Forster pioneered this straight-line design decades ago, and it's still one of the best in-line seaters you can buy. The bullet channel inside the chamber is machined only a few ten-thousandths over bullet diameter, so the bullet is guided dead straight as it seats. Each seating stem is hand polished, and Forster has reworked their stems over the years to play nicely with modern ballistic tip and VLD bullets. It's a non-crimping die, so you're getting precise seating depth and alignment with none of the case-mouth distortion a crimp can introduce.

Setting Up the 223 Rem Bench Rest Die

Adjustment is simple. You loosen the lock ring and turn the seating stem to dial in your depth, then lock it down. The stem uses a fine 27 threads-per-inch pitch, so a full turn moves roughly .037", which gives you plenty of control for fine-tuning overall length. It threads into any standard 7/8-14 press. If you're running a Forster Co-Ax, no shellholder is needed; in other presses, just use the shellholder your press maker recommends.

Reloaders who've switched to this die consistently report runout in the neighborhood of a thousandth or less and tighter groups downrange. It's built in the U.S.A. and made to keep producing straight, accurate .223 ammo for a long run of loading sessions.