Veteran Thread Aussie 'Ask Me Anything' (AMA) 2025

[UGL OZ]

hey all,

i held an 'Ask Me Anything' (AMA) thread a while ago which a lot of people found interesting.

a couple of the lads asked if I’d be doing another one, so I figured there’s no better time than now. It’s always a great way to spark discussions in the Aussie section and provides a nice change of pace from the usual price list posts and "where can I buy X?" questions.

the same guidelines apply: This is an AMA (Ask Me Anything). It can be anything related to products, what it's like being an Aussie based vendor or anything specific about our services and operations (within reason, obviously we can't disclose anything that would compromise our operational security or the likes), the Aus domestic steroid and training scene, or anything else you want to ask that you've never had the opportunity to in the past...

you can find the questions and answers from the last AMA here:

https://www.evolutionary.org/forums/threads/aussie-evo-ask-me-anything.96522/

if you'd like to revisit any questions to see how they've changed since then, feel free to post them below too

as always, this thread is open to all vendors and encourage them to contribute if they'd like to:

@DofRandD
@Liquid Gold Labs
@ODINLABS
@BigBoyLabs
@Sydneycitysupplements
@Sassy's Pharmaceuticals
@Raptor Labs

plus all other members of the Aussie community who would like to get involved! let's get these discussions thriving

AJ

 

[Yuri]

Amazing thread idea, so good to have you back and already bringing good energy to the Aussie section bro!

 

[TheOne1]

The previous AMA thread had some really insightful responses

Lemme kick this off with the first question:

@UGL OZ how has the current crackdown in China affected sourcing raws for local production? (especially compounds like Mast E and Primo, many labs are out of stock of at least one of them atm). Can you shed some light on what is behind said crackdown and how much longer you expect this go for?

 

[UGL OZ]

@UGL OZ how has the current crackdown in China affected sourcing raws for local production? (especially compounds like Mast E and Primo, many labs are out of stock of at least one of them atm). Can you shed some light on what is behind said crackdown and how much longer you expect this go for?

good question brother!

last year there was a series of raids targeting manufacturing plants in China, which definitely caused a powder shortage and a subsequent supply shock for agents (suppliers) fulfilling customer orders destined for Australia. however while the raids were real, I believe their extent was exaggerated. the Chinese government frequently conducts these blitzes, so in most cases, the reliable agents are prepared for them. they work with a network of manufacturers and source from multiple suppliers to build up a stockpile, which they use to fulfill orders while addressing any shortfalls.

the timing of these raids coincided with the lead up of the Chinese holiday period, meaning production levels weren't at full capacity before the break. now that the holiday is over, I expect they will ramp up production to catch up and we should see raw availability return to normal by the end of the month or early March. this aligns with the fulfillment ETAs I've received from multiple trustworthy and reliable suppliers that I've worked with for years.

this production shortfall wasn't limited to any specific compound, although the more expensive ones such as mast e and primo e (which also aren't as in a high of demand of compounds like Test E, for example) are less heavily stockpiled which is why they were harder to source during this period.

so yes, there was certainly a period when things were tight but this is not something we haven't seen before. we are now at the tail end of it and can expect to see a return to normalcy in the flow of raws over the next few weeks!

AJ

 

[Pigsy]

This was my favorite thread

 

[Nugget4273]

How long have you been in this industry for(fitness and bodybuilding)? I was lead to ugl from reddit by a comment from midnight and it seems like you've ran the longest out of all the labs I've heard of and also what lead you down this path? Just a passion and drive or did you start small and just continue to grow into the massive company/business you are today

 

[ODINLABS]

The previous AMA thread had some really insightful responses

Lemme kick this off with the first question:

@UGL OZ how has the current crackdown in China affected sourcing raws for local production? (especially compounds like Mast E and Primo, many labs are out of stock of at least one of them atm). Can you shed some light on what is behind said crackdown and how much longer you expect this go for?

Not all labs brother but the raws for mast e and primo prices have skyrocketed almost triple in some cases

 

[UGL OZ]

How long have you been in this industry for(fitness and bodybuilding)? I was lead to ugl from reddit by a comment from midnight and it seems like you've ran the longest out of all the labs I've heard of and also what lead you down this path? Just a passion and drive or did you start small and just continue to grow into the massive company/business you are today

in a professional capacity, i have been involved in the industry since late 2013, initially operating as a vendor on the darknet before transitioning to the clearnet in 2014. my decision to become a vendor stemmed from recognising a market opportunity that arose from my own needs. sourcing quality products from reliable sources was challenging and i believed that streamlining this process could democratise what was predominantly an underground market.

at that time, i had established a relationship with a reputable lab that gave me a consistent supply of products to meet demand. while the darknet served its purpose, its audience was largely limited to tech-savvy individuals as it required specialised software to access and navigating marketplaces was unreliable. these platforms were frequently the targets of DDoS attacks which resulted in prolonged downtimes and even when accessible, they were still slow and unintuitive. additionally, customers needed a basic understanding of cryptocurrency which was not as prevalent then which made the onboarding process difficult. the risk of a marketplace exit scamming further complicated matters, as we (the vendors who would set up shop there) would lose all the sales reviews/rep we'd had built up plus any funds that were tied up in escrow when marketplaces vanished.

these challenges prompted my pivot to the clearnet where i launched our website. this move eliminated technical barriers for less experienced customers and allowed me to introduce a payment method that was virtually non-existent for such purchases at the time: credit card payments. through leveraging a network of offshore merchant facilities, i was able to securely accept credit card transactions which proved to be a game changer for the Aussie domestic market. as a result, we quickly became the largest online domestic retailer for AAS in Australia. we continued to accept credit card payments for a year or two until regulatory crackdowns on these facilities began. by that point, cryptocurrency had gained popularity prompting us to transition to it as our sole payment method.

our next obstacle was our reliance on third-party labs which became a significant bottleneck for us. this was due to various factors, including lab closures—either by choice or due to law enforcement actions—and an inability to secure sufficient supply to meet demand. managing this situation required careful planning to ensure our growth did not outpace our capacity while also preventing competitors from capitalising on any gaps we left in the market. ultimately, i decided to bring all manufacturing processes in-house with the launch of Platinum. this move eliminated our dependence on third-party suppliers - except for items we could not produce ourselves - such as peptides or products in our Aus pharma range (ie: pharma adex and nolvadex, etc).

with our full range of oils and orals produced in-house we gained control over production which enabled us to accelerate our growth. from that point, we cemented our position as the one-stop-shop for AAS/PEDs and truly established ourselves as a household name within the Aussie AAS scene. we maintained our position as the largest and longest-running source until our hiatus in 2020 (due to covid) before we made our return.

i'm expressing this next part as humbly as i can, simply because this is only possible as a result of the incredible support we have received from this amazing community and the numerous relationships we have formed over the years: many consider us pioneers in shaping the AAS landscape in Australia, specifically with regards to clearnet operations. for years, people relied on forums and secure messaging apps or their local gym connections for purchases. we bridged the gap by automating the process. at the time of our clearnet launch, there were no other online (clearnet) operators in Australia, especially not those accepting credit card payments. this remained the case for a couple of years until other clearnet sources began to emerge, many of which have come and gone but we have been fortunate to endure and thrive in this evolving landscape.

i'm very grateful to be a part of this community - i have a genuine passion for what we do and i honestly can't imagine doing anything else

AJ

 

[BigBoyLabs]

hey all,

i held an 'Ask Me Anything' (AMA) thread a while ago which a lot of people found interesting.

a couple of the lads asked if I’d be doing another one, so I figured there’s no better time than now. It’s always a great way to spark discussions in the Aussie section and provides a nice change of pace from the usual price list posts and "where can I buy X?" questions.

the same guidelines apply: This is an AMA (Ask Me Anything). It can be anything related to products, what it's like being an Aussie based vendor or anything specific about our services and operations (within reason, obviously we can't disclose anything that would compromise our operational security or the likes), the Aus domestic steroid and training scene, or anything else you want to ask that you've never had the opportunity to in the past...

you can find the questions and answers from the last AMA here:

https://www.evolutionary.org/forums/threads/aussie-evo-ask-me-anything.96522/

if you'd like to revisit any questions to see how they've changed since then, feel free to post them below too

as always, this thread is open to all vendors and encourage them to contribute if they'd like to:

@DofRandD
@Liquid Gold Labs
@ODINLABS
@BigBoyLabs
@Sydneycitysupplements
@Sassy's Pharmaceuticals
@Raptor Labs

plus all other members of the Aussie community who would like to get involved! let's get these discussions thriving

AJ

Great initiative brother, love it!

 

[juddy]

That was a great read. Thanks for sharing and the detail!

 

[letsgo]

Where did all the materials come from before China started supplying everything?

 

[Mobster]

good question brother!

last year there was a series of raids targeting manufacturing plants in China, which definitely caused a powder shortage and a subsequent supply shock for agents (suppliers) fulfilling customer orders destined for Australia. however while the raids were real, I believe their extent was exaggerated. the Chinese government frequently conducts these blitzes, so in most cases, the reliable agents are prepared for them. they work with a network of manufacturers and source from multiple suppliers to build up a stockpile, which they use to fulfill orders while addressing any shortfalls.

the timing of these raids coincided with the lead up of the Chinese holiday period, meaning production levels weren't at full capacity before the break. now that the holiday is over, I expect they will ramp up production to catch up and we should see raw availability return to normal by the end of the month or early March. this aligns with the fulfillment ETAs I've received from multiple trustworthy and reliable suppliers that I've worked with for years.

this production shortfall wasn't limited to any specific compound, although the more expensive ones such as mast e and primo e (which also aren't as in a high of demand of compounds like Test E, for example) are less heavily stockpiled which is why they were harder to source during this period.

so yes, there was certainly a period when things were tight but this is not something we haven't seen before. we are now at the tail end of it and can expect to see a return to normalcy in the flow of raws over the next few weeks!

AJ

How that side of things works can be very skewed to say the least. They went crazy for milk for their kids (in spite of HUGE lactose issues for most Chinese. So created a HUGE dairy plant, put massive pressure from their Premier on down on production and so there was short cuts involving spiking with melamine. Ended up causing poisoning issues and several workers were executed. Yet most roid production must go to export. Makes you wonder why they wanted to do the raids

You also had, regards primo, zero issues elsewhere. So exaggerated for sure.

 

[vialturn]

Love the gear
Do you think in the future, you will include more blends like a bulk blend?
Why does equipose change colour yellow to clear

 

[ODINLABS]

How that side of things works can be very skewed to say the least. They went crazy for milk for their kids (in spite of HUGE lactose issues for most Chinese. So created a HUGE dairy plant, put massive pressure from their Premier on down on production and so there was short cuts involving spiking with melamine. Ended up causing poisoning issues and several workers were executed. Yet most roid production must go to export. Makes you wonder why they wanted to do the raids

You also had, regards primo, zero issues elsewhere. So exaggerated for sure.

That was tragic that baby formula poisoning absolutely tragic may all the babies that died RIP and that piece of shit that got executed forever be a disgrace to his family.

I. Agree on all the rest you have said also

 

[Boris Stroganoff]

When Vendors are receiving Chinese raws do they request independent HPLC tests or just take it for granted that it is what it is sold as? Surely the COA's from Agents can be duped.
Is it possible to get quantitative screening of compounds in Australia, why do we need to send to Janoshik (presume overseas)?

 

[ODINLABS]

When Vendors are receiving Chinese raws do they request independent HPLC tests or just take it for granted that it is what it is sold as? Surely the COA's from Agents can be duped.
Is it possible to get quantitative screening of compounds in Australia, why do we need to send to Janoshik (presume overseas)?

When raws are made from the intermediate stage to formulation then finished product. They have to conduct hplc test per batch they make at the factories as these are legal pharmaceutical companies so no it does not get faked.
Where it can get faked is. When the drop shippers get a hold of it cut it and then they fake a hplc or COA of it.
But..... Most of the reliqble. Sources actually ship. From. Factory to courier company or. They get the stock and pack it and send direct to you..... There will always be dodgy ppl that do dodgy things but eventually they get caught out. Just choose your suppliers wisely.