I have a ruger mk II also. Mine has a 22 inch barrel.
I've had good luck with 150 gr and 165 gr. Here's my advice - switch to the 168 gr bullet. Seems odd that 3 grains would make a difference, but it seems to work for me. I've had some experiences with 150 and 165 grain bullets "blowin' up" on impact. The 168's seem to hold together a bit better. They are a bit longer than the 165 and have a better ballistic coefficient.
I use W760 powder 58 grains (WORK UP TO THIS LOAD LEVEL IN SMALL INCREMENTS - MOST LOADING MANUALS SAY THIS IS ABOVE MAX!!!)
I get 2850 fps (true chronograph reading) Groups around 1 inch. W760 powder can also be measured with a mechanical measure quite nicely. Although I've gotten good accuracy from the IMR stick powder - it doesn't measure out well.
This load has killed two deer for me so far. Both dropped. Nice expansion and exit wounds - no blowing up on the hide like lighter bullets do.
Tkeveney
I've had good luck with 150 gr and 165 gr. Here's my advice - switch to the 168 gr bullet. Seems odd that 3 grains would make a difference, but it seems to work for me. I've had some experiences with 150 and 165 grain bullets "blowin' up" on impact. The 168's seem to hold together a bit better. They are a bit longer than the 165 and have a better ballistic coefficient.
I use W760 powder 58 grains (WORK UP TO THIS LOAD LEVEL IN SMALL INCREMENTS - MOST LOADING MANUALS SAY THIS IS ABOVE MAX!!!)
I get 2850 fps (true chronograph reading) Groups around 1 inch. W760 powder can also be measured with a mechanical measure quite nicely. Although I've gotten good accuracy from the IMR stick powder - it doesn't measure out well.
This load has killed two deer for me so far. Both dropped. Nice expansion and exit wounds - no blowing up on the hide like lighter bullets do.
Tkeveney