A closer look at Trenbolone
The Laws
In 1970, Congress passed the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act. Title II of the Act, known as the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), gave the Department of Justice the authority to regulate drugs of abuse. On November 29, 1990 the Anabolic Steroids Control Act was passed, which amended the CSA to include anabolic steroids as schedule III drugs of abuse. The CSA however specifically excludes approved veterinary implant pellets that contain anabolic steroids. Below is an excerpt from the March/April 1999 FDA veterinarian newsletter that explains this issue:
Examples of Schedule III products include androgenic anabolic agents, such as boldenone, testosterone, and stanozolol. Since these drugs are formulated in both injectable and tablet dosage forms and have potential for abuse, they have not been exempted from CSA. Anabolic agents which are used as implants are unlikely to be abused, and therefore are exempted from Schedule III requirements of CSA. An example of these types of drugs is trenbolone acetate which is chemically and pharmacologically related to testosterone and defined as a controlled substance under Title 21, Part 1300.01(a)(4) of the CFR. Since it is only approved as an implant, trenbolone acetate is exempted from CSA requirements.
Although excluded from the controlled substances act, such products could still be regulated as prescription drug items. That however is not the case with trenbolone acetate implant pellets at this time. Noting that they are not controlled substances, have been deemed safe, are not used for diseased conditions and the practice of implanting livestock is well understood by those in the industry, The Center for Veterinary Medicine has recommended over-the-counter (OTC) distribution for trenbolone acetate implant pellets. We must remember however that the CSA removes exempt status from any anabolic steroid implant product that is sold with the intent that they are for human consumption. You will therefore not find trenbolone sold in the back pages of the fitness magazines, at least not from a proprietor that wants to stay out of trouble with the law.
The Pellets
I thought the opening section was necessary to help you understand the actual laws as they stand in the U.S. at this time. Trenbolone, in the form of trenbolone acetate cattle implant pellets, are not controlled substances, and are sold over-the-counter in the United States without federal regulation. Currently the most popular such product is Finaplix®, sold by the now merged Hoechst-Roussel Agri-vet Company. This product comes in two forms, Finaplix-H® and Finaplix-S®, which denotes if the product was intended for a Heifer or a Steer respectively. The total dosages of both products are different, with the “H” cartridge containing 100 20mg TA pellets (2,000 mg) and the “S” version only 70 (1,400 mg). The retail price for the H, the more popular item, is about $40. Ivy Animal Health also recently introduced two competing products of similar makeup, sold as Component-TH® and Component-TS®. Their products come in double-sized cartridges, such that the TH version contains 4,000 mg of TA and sells for around $75.00. Versions of both products containing trenbolone and estradiol are also produced, however are excluded from this discussion as they are of no interest to the athlete.
Using the Pellets
As mentioned in the FDA memo above, trenbolone is considered safe, and is excluded from controlled substance laws, specifically because it comes in a form not useable by humans, at least not directly. Trenbolone is normally an injectable steroid, which makes using these pellets extremely difficult. No one is of course going to use a cattle implant gun to administer them, and they can’t just be taken orally, so we must find a more creative way to use them. The pellets themselves are small, hard and contain a good amount of binders in addition to 20mg of TA. Most methods adopted involve administering both the steroid and binders to the person, which should be safe, as the binders were designed for internal use and are non-toxic. Although this list could be much more expansive, below are a few of the more popular methods utilized by bodybuilders.
DMSO
The oldest and probably still most popular way to use trenbolone implant pellets is to make them into a transdermal solution with the use of DMSO (dimethyl sulfoxide). DMSO is a natural solvent derived from wood pulp, and is an extremely effective transdermal carrier. It is similarly capable of pulling trenbolone acetate into circulation through the skin. I believe this practice was first suggested by Dan Duchaine many years ago, and is without question an effective way to use this product. To accomplish this, the pellets are simply ground up and added to a solution of 50% DMSO, 50% water (pure DMSO would be too irritating to the skin). It is important to use pharmaceutical (pure) DMSO, and not industrial grade, which will have a good amount of impurity to it. Just enough solution is used to dissolve the desired amount of powder, as this end product is much more a liquid than a gel and runs off the skin easily if too much is applied (alternately a gel form of DMSO could be used). Typically 3 to 4 pellets are used per day, and due to the rapidity in which DMSO penetrates the skin the daily dose is divided into two or three separate applications.
A major drawback to DMSO is that this substance has an extremely pungent odor to it. You can usually pick out someone taking trenbolone this way, as a garlicky odor will most likely be permeating from his person, particularly his breath. There are also other concerns with DMSO, including the fact that it is so effective a solvent and carrier that it pulls just about anything with a small enough molecular weight into the skin with it. Users should be cautious to thoroughly clean the skin before applying, and be cognizant of what comes into contact the area soon after. Some go so far as to use plastic-wrap, which protects both the skin from contaminants and the steroid application from rubbing off. DMSO users also frequently report minor side effects such as itching or burning rashes at the site of administration as well, which make this type of use less than perfectly comfortable for many. Pat Arnold had once made the suggestion of diluting DMSO to about 5-10% with 190 proof grain alcohol (isopropyl would work also). The alcohol acts as a carrier like DMSO, but quickly evaporates after application leaving a film of steroid and DMSO on the skin. For those very sensitive to DMSO, this mixture may allow for a less irritating (or less garlicky) dermal as you can reduce the amount used.
Raw Injection
This is the practice of simply grinding up the pellets and mixing them with an injectable oil-based steroid or vitamin compound. The pellets are typically just crushed with the back of a spoon, and the powder dropped into the open top of a syringe loaded with a low dose steroid such as Equipoise or 50mg Deca. The solution is periodically mixed (shaken) and then left to sit, so that as much powder as possible will dissolve into the solution before it is injected. Often a 21-gauge needle is needed, as the remnant powder might clog a needle of smaller size. Although effective, this process is generally thought of as the dirty way to use trenbolone. There are some clear sterility concerns, and the injection is a mix of steroid and all the pellet binders and glue. For these reasons, many who want to attempt making in injectable opt to purchase one of the commercial “Fina Injection Kits” which produce a cleaner product.
Injectable Kits
A few kits are currently being sold that offer a better way to home-brew an injectable solution from your trenbolone acetate pellets. The processes involved are much more detailed, but result in a sterile solution of 75mg/ml trenbolone acetate, free of binders and contaminants. I spoke with a well-known chemist who identifies himself as Animal, about the kit he had developed. He is very guarded about the actual ingredients, but assured me that the final solution produced by his kit was a sterile oily solution, which included a 10% benzyl alcohol content (a common anti-microbial agent used in injectable drugs). The process he outlined was as such. Crushed pellets are added to an unidentified solution, which acts as a solvent dissolving the powder. Once fully mixed, a measured amount of oil is added to the solution. After sitting for some time, a strong separation will occur such that a clear solution will sit on top of thin opaque layers of liquid (the opaque layer contains the glues and binders). The clear solution (containing the steroid) is...
