artr: Two thigns with that Mauser. (1) The ammunition - if you are trying to group your rifle do not use surplus ammo, use new manufacture. Sellier and Bellot is an excellent brand. It is inexpensive and accurate in all my 8mms. Also, use the bullet weight originally designed for that caliber - 200 grains, that is what they shoot best with.
(2) Bedding - your Mauser was never bedded. The barrelled action was just dropped into a mass produced stock. You will need to clean all the cosmoline off the stock before trying to bed it. Use Easy-off Oven Cleaner or Murphy's Oil Soap to degrease the stock. You may not need to rough up or sandpaper the inside of the stock after using that stuff as it usually raises the grain and gives the bedding compound a good hold. However, you may, if you prefer, wish to sand off the grain so you have a clean, smooth and sanded surface to bed. Next you will need to remove the excess wood from the stock so that you have about a 1/4 inch clearance between all the metal and the wood. You will be free-floating the barrel within the stock so that neither the forestock or the upper handguard touch the barrel. Make certain the inside of the barrel channel is adequately opened up, including the metal barrel bands, so that nothing impacts on the barrel. You should reassemble the rifle and lower stock and try to run a playing card down the barrel channel between the stock and the barrel. If you can do that easily she is ready for bedding. If not, remove more wood. Once you are to that point, you are read to start bedding.
I prefer the Micro-Bedding compound you can get from Brownells. It comes in two containers and mixes to form an epoxy resin. I prefer this as it does not run as other bedding compounds do. Make certain you have covered every inch of metal, including screws, pillars, etc., with a soft paste car wax. Don't get any bedding compound into the trigger action or the ejector, but place in enough bedding so that when you tighten the action back into the stock the excess bedding oozes out at the juncture of the stock and the action. Apply your bedding compound only as far down the barrel channel as the end of the chamber, no farther. If your rifle has a cleaning rod retention block in the stock it is usually under the chamber area - this will have to be relieved so it does not impact on the barrel when the barrel heats up. Give the compound about an hour to set up and begin drying and remove the excess (squeezed out stuff) with a razor blade or small bladed knife. After about 2 or 3 hours unscrew the action retaining bolts so they don't set up on ya. You may wish to remove the action from the stock at that time but then put it right back in and tighten it down.
That should tighten up your groups for ya. Hope this helps. Mikey.
