DefMetalLifter
MuscleChemistry Registered Member
[h=1]Black Market Update<o
></o>[/h][h=1]<o> </o>[/h][h=1]This month I’d like to take another up-close look at the steroid black market. As you have probably heard me say time and time again, the steroid manufacturing industry is extremely dynamic. New companies crop up, new products are introduced and new boundaries are exceeded, almost on a weekly basis. Keeping up with what’s going on takes constant vigilance. With this in mind, I have decided to make Black Market Update a regular full-length feature in my Anabolic Research Update column. This will give me an opportunity to better focus on some of the more noteworthy changes in the steroid market, as well as provide readers with what, in many instances, will be more readily useful and relevant information. This month, we’ll take a look at the changing look of Russian methandrostenolone, the potential reemergence of drostanolone injectables, some South African testosterone cypionate and the new look to Brazilian Anadrol. <o></o>[/h]<o style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Argumentum; font-size: 14px;"> </o>[h=1]The New Russian Dbol<o></o>[/h]Russian Dbol is one of the oldest and most widely circulated forms of Dianabol here in the<st1:country-region><st1lace>U.S.</st1lace></st1:country-region> It has been a staple product on our black market for well over a decade. It can be found in every corner of the country and has probably passed through the hands of nearly every steroid dealer at one time or another. Over the years, the look of this well-known favorite has changed a few times, evolving slowly from crude rubber-banded strips stuffed in faded green boxes, to the polished appearance of a modern pharmaceutical that the product carries today. Numerous counterfeits have cropped up over the years, cashing in on the high demand American bodybuilders and athletes have created for this steroid. Fakes have likewise been an ever-present nuisance for as long as Russian Ds have been popular. Pictured here are the three main distinctions you were likely to come across when shopping for this drug over the past decade or so, ordered oldest to newest. Note that the new purple boxes have been circulating since at least early 2003 and would be the preferred form to look for when shopping. As it is so new, it is the least likely to be the subject of wide-scale counterfeiting, although fakes are probably already in the works. You will not come across any real versions of the old green box at this time, as it has been off the market for many years now. Fakes of this original form can still be located, however.<o></o><o> </o>[h=1]The Return of Drostanolone?<o></o>[/h]Masteron (drostanolone propionate) was a favorite pre-contest hardening steroid among competitive European bodybuilders for years. Its loss from the steroid-manufacturing world in the early ‘90s was a hard-felt one, leaving many to long for the days when there was easy access to this potent androgen. There is still a strong demand for this drug today, which continues to offer an excellent target for counterfeit labs to exploit. If you look around, there is probably more fake Masteron floating around these days than there ever was real Masteron. But this also means a lucrative market still exists for this steroid, should a legitimate drug company step up to the plate and invest in it again. That may very well have happened with Xelox Pharma Co. in <st1:city><st1lace>Manila</st1lace></st1:city> (<st1:country-region><st1lace>Philippines</st1lace></st1:country-region>), which recently released an injectable drostanolone product called Dromostan. Dromostan contains 50 milligrams per milliliter (mg/ml) of drostanolone (base, no ester) in a 5ml multi-dose vial. Two vials come in each box, for a total steroid content of 500mg per package. I have not been able to confirm this product’s legitimacy with lab testing as of yet, however all signs point to this company being for real. If that’s the case, I think we can expect to see a lot from Xelox in the near future. <o></o>British Dragon, a popular manufacturer based in <st1:country-region><st1lace>Thailand</st1lace></st1:country-region>, also recently introduced a drostanolone product they call Mastabol. It contains 50mg/ml of steroid in a 10ml vial, but rumor has it they are going to increase the dosage to 100mg in the near future. I am very confused about this compound, though. The company lists the active ingredient as drostanolone di-propionate, which doesn’t make sense. Di-propionate is only used with one other steroid, methandriol (methylandrostenediol dipropionate), because structurally this particular compound has two open hydroxyl groups to attach two propionate esters (hence, the “di” part). Like most other anabolic steroids, drostanolone has only one hydroxyl group. The attachment of two propionate esters is not possible. Perhaps the base compound is 2-hydroxyl-DHT instead of the correct 2-methyl-DHT structure of drostanolone. I hope to get clarification on this issue in the near future. I’m sure many guys are keeping their fingers crossed that this product does indeed contain real drostanolone. If so, it would be a very well received addition to an already highly regarded product line.<o></o><o> </o>[h=1]South African Cypionate<o></o>[/h]Cypionate has always been a highly sought-after ester of testosterone. Perhaps the fact that it is not very widely produced has something to do with. It seems that whenever the availability of any particular steroid is low, its demand starts to go up. Realistically, cypionate is no different than testosterone enanthate, which is far more widely produced and often much cheaper to purchase milligram for milligram. Still, many dealers go the extra mile to find reliable sources for cyp, which may have been behind the importation of this Depotrone box from <st1:country-region><st1lace>South Africa</st1lace></st1:country-region>. This product comes packaged in 2ml glass ampules, with each amp containing 100mg/ml of steroid. Five ampules sit in a plastic tray, two of which are stuffed into each box. This provides 2,000mg of steroid, or the equivalent of what is in your average 10ml (200mg/ml) vial. At this time, fakes of Depotrone do not appear to be a big problem. However its availability is also still relatively low in the <st1:country-region><st1lace>U.S.</st1lace></st1:country-region>, as <st1:country-region><st1lace>South Africa</st1lace></st1:country-region> remains a very minor source country for imported steroids.<o></o><o> </o>Brazilian Anadrol<o></o>Hemogenin is the brand name Anadrol-50 carries in <st1:country-region><st1lace>Brazil</st1lace></st1:country-region>. It has been a very popular anabolic steroid there for years, probably owing to the simple fact that few steroids are made domestically in <st1:country-region><st1lace>Brazil</st1lace></st1:country-region>. Hemogenin has been a common export to the Anadrol-disadvantaged <st1:country-region><st1lace>U.S.</st1lace></st1:country-region> for just about as long. Over the years, the company officially marketing Hemogenin has changed a few times, as has the look of its packaging. Early on it was exclusively a Syntex product, then a product of Sarsa. And after a recent yearlong hiatus, Brazilian “Hemo” is back, this time made by Aventis. Its packaging is similar to that of the old Hemo, consisting of a small cardboard box that carries a single strip of 10 tablets. The overall look of the box and strips is much different this time around, however, sporting a purple and white look as opposed to the old red and green color scheme of the Syntex and Sarsa Hemogenin products. Since it’s so new, counterfeits are not yet a problem. With the marked popularity of Hemogenin, however, I would not expect this to remain the case for very long.<o></o><o> </o>Reader Contributions<o></o>If you have any unique steroid products that you think may be of interest to other readers, or if you simply are not sure if what you have is real and would like my opinion, you can send me the empty packaging for evaluation.
></o>[/h][h=1]<o> </o>[/h][h=1]This month I’d like to take another up-close look at the steroid black market. As you have probably heard me say time and time again, the steroid manufacturing industry is extremely dynamic. New companies crop up, new products are introduced and new boundaries are exceeded, almost on a weekly basis. Keeping up with what’s going on takes constant vigilance. With this in mind, I have decided to make Black Market Update a regular full-length feature in my Anabolic Research Update column. This will give me an opportunity to better focus on some of the more noteworthy changes in the steroid market, as well as provide readers with what, in many instances, will be more readily useful and relevant information. This month, we’ll take a look at the changing look of Russian methandrostenolone, the potential reemergence of drostanolone injectables, some South African testosterone cypionate and the new look to Brazilian Anadrol. <o></o>[/h]<o style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family: Argumentum; font-size: 14px;"> </o>[h=1]The New Russian Dbol<o></o>[/h]Russian Dbol is one of the oldest and most widely circulated forms of Dianabol here in the<st1:country-region><st1lace>U.S.</st1lace></st1:country-region> It has been a staple product on our black market for well over a decade. It can be found in every corner of the country and has probably passed through the hands of nearly every steroid dealer at one time or another. Over the years, the look of this well-known favorite has changed a few times, evolving slowly from crude rubber-banded strips stuffed in faded green boxes, to the polished appearance of a modern pharmaceutical that the product carries today. Numerous counterfeits have cropped up over the years, cashing in on the high demand American bodybuilders and athletes have created for this steroid. Fakes have likewise been an ever-present nuisance for as long as Russian Ds have been popular. Pictured here are the three main distinctions you were likely to come across when shopping for this drug over the past decade or so, ordered oldest to newest. Note that the new purple boxes have been circulating since at least early 2003 and would be the preferred form to look for when shopping. As it is so new, it is the least likely to be the subject of wide-scale counterfeiting, although fakes are probably already in the works. You will not come across any real versions of the old green box at this time, as it has been off the market for many years now. Fakes of this original form can still be located, however.<o></o><o> </o>[h=1]The Return of Drostanolone?<o></o>[/h]Masteron (drostanolone propionate) was a favorite pre-contest hardening steroid among competitive European bodybuilders for years. Its loss from the steroid-manufacturing world in the early ‘90s was a hard-felt one, leaving many to long for the days when there was easy access to this potent androgen. There is still a strong demand for this drug today, which continues to offer an excellent target for counterfeit labs to exploit. If you look around, there is probably more fake Masteron floating around these days than there ever was real Masteron. But this also means a lucrative market still exists for this steroid, should a legitimate drug company step up to the plate and invest in it again. That may very well have happened with Xelox Pharma Co. in <st1:city><st1lace>Manila</st1lace></st1:city> (<st1:country-region><st1lace>Philippines</st1lace></st1:country-region>), which recently released an injectable drostanolone product called Dromostan. Dromostan contains 50 milligrams per milliliter (mg/ml) of drostanolone (base, no ester) in a 5ml multi-dose vial. Two vials come in each box, for a total steroid content of 500mg per package. I have not been able to confirm this product’s legitimacy with lab testing as of yet, however all signs point to this company being for real. If that’s the case, I think we can expect to see a lot from Xelox in the near future. <o></o>British Dragon, a popular manufacturer based in <st1:country-region><st1lace>Thailand</st1lace></st1:country-region>, also recently introduced a drostanolone product they call Mastabol. It contains 50mg/ml of steroid in a 10ml vial, but rumor has it they are going to increase the dosage to 100mg in the near future. I am very confused about this compound, though. The company lists the active ingredient as drostanolone di-propionate, which doesn’t make sense. Di-propionate is only used with one other steroid, methandriol (methylandrostenediol dipropionate), because structurally this particular compound has two open hydroxyl groups to attach two propionate esters (hence, the “di” part). Like most other anabolic steroids, drostanolone has only one hydroxyl group. The attachment of two propionate esters is not possible. Perhaps the base compound is 2-hydroxyl-DHT instead of the correct 2-methyl-DHT structure of drostanolone. I hope to get clarification on this issue in the near future. I’m sure many guys are keeping their fingers crossed that this product does indeed contain real drostanolone. If so, it would be a very well received addition to an already highly regarded product line.<o></o><o> </o>[h=1]South African Cypionate<o></o>[/h]Cypionate has always been a highly sought-after ester of testosterone. Perhaps the fact that it is not very widely produced has something to do with. It seems that whenever the availability of any particular steroid is low, its demand starts to go up. Realistically, cypionate is no different than testosterone enanthate, which is far more widely produced and often much cheaper to purchase milligram for milligram. Still, many dealers go the extra mile to find reliable sources for cyp, which may have been behind the importation of this Depotrone box from <st1:country-region><st1lace>South Africa</st1lace></st1:country-region>. This product comes packaged in 2ml glass ampules, with each amp containing 100mg/ml of steroid. Five ampules sit in a plastic tray, two of which are stuffed into each box. This provides 2,000mg of steroid, or the equivalent of what is in your average 10ml (200mg/ml) vial. At this time, fakes of Depotrone do not appear to be a big problem. However its availability is also still relatively low in the <st1:country-region><st1lace>U.S.</st1lace></st1:country-region>, as <st1:country-region><st1lace>South Africa</st1lace></st1:country-region> remains a very minor source country for imported steroids.<o></o><o> </o>Brazilian Anadrol<o></o>Hemogenin is the brand name Anadrol-50 carries in <st1:country-region><st1lace>Brazil</st1lace></st1:country-region>. It has been a very popular anabolic steroid there for years, probably owing to the simple fact that few steroids are made domestically in <st1:country-region><st1lace>Brazil</st1lace></st1:country-region>. Hemogenin has been a common export to the Anadrol-disadvantaged <st1:country-region><st1lace>U.S.</st1lace></st1:country-region> for just about as long. Over the years, the company officially marketing Hemogenin has changed a few times, as has the look of its packaging. Early on it was exclusively a Syntex product, then a product of Sarsa. And after a recent yearlong hiatus, Brazilian “Hemo” is back, this time made by Aventis. Its packaging is similar to that of the old Hemo, consisting of a small cardboard box that carries a single strip of 10 tablets. The overall look of the box and strips is much different this time around, however, sporting a purple and white look as opposed to the old red and green color scheme of the Syntex and Sarsa Hemogenin products. Since it’s so new, counterfeits are not yet a problem. With the marked popularity of Hemogenin, however, I would not expect this to remain the case for very long.<o></o><o> </o>Reader Contributions<o></o>If you have any unique steroid products that you think may be of interest to other readers, or if you simply are not sure if what you have is real and would like my opinion, you can send me the empty packaging for evaluation.