I think the domestic vendors in the space that have a good supply and reputation are able to charge the prices that they do because of that. By providing group buy services they would be uncercutting themselves.

There's a reason that you pay the retail markup. Convenience, stability, quality, no risk.... The vendor puts in all the work so you don't have to. That's why you have to go to a group buy to get group buy prices. You are then putting in the time and assuming the risk yourself.

@Stan-Douglas i don't know why this didn't get any traction. This one calls out to me. Every time I try and talk to somebody about what they're doing and they're dosing and whatnot, they want to talk about units. HOW MANY MGs ARE IN THOSE 15 UNITS?

I had already been on the fence about starting a GLP-1 for a year or more before taking the leap.
I went from being pretty active running my own business to taking a job managing somebody else's business and spending a lot more time behind a desk. I was already about 60# north of where I would like to be and I put on another 25 in short order. I tried going through "proper channels" to get started on Tirz but my insurance did what they are good at, deny deny deny.
Around that same time, a friend of mine had been encouraging me to try BPC 157 to see if it helped with my arthritis pain at all. He's a gym rat and swears by it. He's also a needle-phobe, so he takes the capsules.
His vendor accidentally shipped him 3 10mg vials of lyophilized BPC-157 and he offered it to me. I did a little homework and started a course of 500mcg daily. I started feeling some joint and spine relief after the first 10 days or so.
At about week 3 I fell and contorted my back something awful. Barely made it to my bed and couldn't get out of it. Not even for the bathroom. Thank God for helping hands. Day 2 of not being able to move without crippling spasms and I ended up having to take an ambulance ride to the ER. They did the usual, morphine and Methocarbamol. At least they made me comfortable enough to be able to walk and get into a car.
The fall happened on Friday. I went to the ER on Sunday. I went back to work Monday. I thought I was going to be out of commission for at least a week based on past experiences. The only thing different than past injuries was the BPC-157.
That started my journey.

I checked out Crush's prices now that they have re-opened under new ownership (sad to see you go, Rory). I'm a little disappointed. Their current prices are about 15-20% higher than what I'm seeing in my order history. In the past, I've bounced back and forth between them and @nexaph because their pricing has been very competitive and I have had good experiences with both every order.

@Snake-Pepskin amazing how you can train yourself to keep those long buried abs holding your gut in so well that you forget your doing it. I don't think I've relaxed my gut since the year 2000 or so.

@Stevepep Yeah. The testing lab space could use some more players. Jano and Vanguard are about the only options besides those you just named.

Lobster has posted some interesting Jano test results in his TG group. I don't know how to verify this as true, but he has posted COAs of his products from multiple labs and from Janoshik where he compares the results from Jano that were from samples that he sent and samples that Group Buy Testing Groups sent in of the same products from the same batch where. Jano's results were consistently lower for products with the Lobster name as the source versus private groups that didn't name him as the source. Supposedly the same batches of products getting different results depending on who sent them in. Makes you question some of the politics behind the labs. Who can you really trust?

I reached out to Soma to ask if they have an updated COA for their Glutathione since the one posted on their site is over a year old. Their response is that it is still the COA for the current batch.
I then asked if their shipped product is traceable to the batch number on the COA. They stated that they do not use any unique identifiers on the vials that they ship (these are single vials, not kits).
Their Glutathione is already reconstituted and the COA they have posted is for reconstituted Glutathione, so the fact that they are either: a) shipping a product that has been reconstituted for over a year; or b) shipping a product that is not consistent with their COA; is concerning. Their COA doesn't even have a batch number on it; only the Jano numbers. It's also only mass and purity.
When I brought this up to them they stated that they have very large batches made at a time, that their product has a 36 month shelf life, and that the product they are shipping currently is from the same batch. When I pressed them about the fact that there's no way to match the product sent with the COA, they told me that I should go ahead and check with other vendors and see if any of them offer that. We all know that any reputable vendor at least has a way of matching their product to the COA provided.
Another concern: unless Glutathione is reconstituted with stringent PH control and nitrogen purged, it is only shelf stable for up to 14 days. How are they achieving 36 months of stability? If they are truly using such a highly controlled process, wouldn't they want to brag about it?
Soma Chems Gluta COA.png" class=" img-fluid img-markdown" />

@denti you know when you find something and it looks really good on paper and you really want it to be legit?

They have a very sparkly shiny website and have COAs posted with everything and I really wanted them to talk me over to the "buy" side of the fence. I'm easily entertained by the sparkly shiny stuff. I was a captive audience. All "Alex" needed to do was convince me that he/she even gave a sh*t about quality and safety and I might have bit. They couldn't even show a modicum of effort.

My pet's current research stack is KLOW daily, Tesa/Ipa (500 mcg of the Tesa, a pretty light dose) nearly daily (depends on when I'm fasted for long enough for it to be effective), Semax/Selank 3-4 days/week, and Reta weekly.

My pet was on Tirz for a few months (got up to 7.5 mg/week) before it decided to wash out and start with Reta. He was also on CJC-1295 No DAC/Tesa/Ipa for a couple months before switching to the Tesa/Ipa only combo.

I switched him to just the Tesa/Ipa combo without the CJC-1295 primarily because of the cost. I prefer pre-mixed compounds because dealing with 5-8 sticks a day would be too time consuming for me to maintain, generate a sh*tload of pen caps, and require so much time reconstituting and transferring to pens. I couldn't find a decent price for that compound so I switched him to just the Tesa/Ipa.

First thing I noticed was that he didn't flush as bad without the CJC-1295 and that his sleep wasn't as affected. The CJC-1295 must have been the culprit for his restless nights. Second thing I noticed is that there appears to be no real difference in his results. Mid-section fat has been coming off pretty consistently and muscle loss has been minimal considering that his idea of a workout happens during the course of his work week and not in a gym. I'm very happy with his results.

The Semax/Selank combo is very noticeable. He feels sharper and tougher to rattle on the days he takes it. His job is fast paced and has a lot of moving parts, so improved brain function is an incredible aid.

Regarding the switch from Tirz to Reta, at first he thought the Reta was less effective because it wasn't as noticeable during the first couple weeks at 2 mg/week. He titrated up to 4 mg/week starting with week 3 and still doesn't notice the effect as much as when he first started Tirz. Food noise is gone, but he actually has less discomfort from eating than he experienced with Tirz. Most subjects note more side effects from Reta, but this one has not. It's quite perfect, actually. He doesn't have to force himself to eat but is still very mindful of his diet choices and portions.

Anyway, this stack has worked very well and I don't plan to change it on him anytime soon except to maybe up the Tesa/Ipa dosage. Down from 275# at his highest to 240# currently after about 4 months with no noticeable muscle loss. He isn't approaching it as a race, he's trying to keep the loss consistent and manageable to mitigate side effects like excess skin and muscle loss.

@pep_researcher Lol. I should be doing the same. Peps have benefitted me so much that I want to share them with everybody. It's my personal mission to get all of my friends and family away from their crappy "connections" that are buying from the same sources we all use and selling it to their friends for 5x what they are paying. I've converted a lot of them. I tell them what price I can get it for and then tell them to give me a little bit on top and I'll give it to them with bac water, a pen for each product, a lesson on how to fill the pen (even though most of them just call me and ask me if I can come by and reload their pens for them, ), pen tips, wipes, etc....

It's pretty gratifying to tell a friend that tells me that they are getting such a great price from their sister's cousin's hairdresser's husband's dog that I can share my Reta with them for $20-$60 a month. It always turns out that their great price is a couple hundred dollars a month for an unknown product. Makes me feel like a missionary spreading the gospel!

THE SAGA CONTINUES. At this point it is just entertaining.

Me: I'm interested in the Glutathione. I looked at the COA you have posted and it's not very recent. Do you have me recent COAs? If I ordered some, would the product I receive have a COA that matches its batch number? I see that it's already reconstituted. Does it need to be stored cold? Room temperature? When do you reconstitute it? At told of order or is it already on your shelf reconstituted?

Soma:
Hi there,
Our products have a shelf life of 36 months.
Once a new batch starts, we will put its COA on the product page on our website.
Furthermore, we do not ship COAs with the products, and the vial does not mention batch number.
Let us know if you need help with anything else. We are happy to help!

Me: So how do I trace the product that I receive back to lab testing if you don't have any control numbers on the products that you send? Why do you bother posting a COA if there's no way to link it to the product? Your COA is over a year old. You either have old product that you are selling or you are selling product that you haven't had third-party tested. I want to purchase from you, but I want to know that you have safety protocols in place.

Soma: The COA uploaded on our website can be traced to the third-party laboratory's COA lookup site.

Me: I understand that. I already looked it up on Janoshik's site. That's great. You guys sent a vial of Glutathione to Janoshik for testing at some point. How do you link that test to the vial I receive if there is no batch number or unique identifier?
Also, are you confirming that you are selling Glutathione that is over a
year old?

Soma: We produce the products in large batches. When one batch comes to an end, a new batch is produced and sent for testing to third-party labs.

Me: Understood.
Not that I don't trust you, but I don't trust anybody. You still have not
explained how a person can link the product that they receive to the lab
testing that you performed. Third party testing is useless if there's no chain of custody or individual identifier linking it to a particular batch. You are basically saying, "Trust me." That's what everybody says when they are lying to you.

Soma: Hi there,
I completely understand your concern. As mentioned before, the third-party test reports belong to the same batch as the one we ship.
We have been in the market for more than 7 years and are known for our high-quality standards across the research community.
That said, please feel free to carry your research with other vendors and see if any vendor publish batch number.
Thank you!

Me: So you ARE saying, "Just trust me." That is what every disreputable vendor says about things. And reputation in this industry is only good until it isn't. This space is constantly changing, and vendors change hands often. "Trust me" is not an acceptable response.
Every reputable vendor provides a way to trace batches to COAs. Even the grey market provides that these days.
After determining you don't meet my minimum vendor standards, it took me only 10 minutes to find someone else with better pricing and a clear, up-to-date COA.
According to my research, Glutathione is only stable for up to 14 days
after reconstitution unless pharmaceutical processes are used. Can you describe your reconstitution process that allows your product to remain shelf stable for 3 years?
Thank you for your time.

Soma: Hi there!
I’m sorry to hear that our current labeling processes don’t quite align with your research needs. We’re working on implementing the changes you suggested.
I’d also like to clarify one point: it sounds like we might be mixing up shelf life before and after reconstitution. After reconstitution, products typically remain viable for anywhere from a few days to a few weeks, depending on sterility and storage temperature. The 3-year range mentioned earlier by my coworker applies specifically to unopened, sealed vials stored away from heat.
I hope the other vendor meets all your requirements for now, but we’d love the chance to work with you again once our labeling and COA processes better align with what you need.

Me: So you don't even know your own product?
Lyophilized compounds are shelf stable until they are reconstituted. Reconstituted compounds have a short life, just as you stated.
You are selling a reconstituted vial; otherwise, it wouldn't have a dilution ratio (200mg/ml) and total volume (20ml) to indicate the quantity.
Your COA also shows results for a diluted vial, not a vial of lyophilized Gluta. That's why its results also indicate the dilution ratio.
So you sent a reconstituted vial for testing and are now indicating that you reconstitute each vial right before shipping? This further indicates that your testing represents nothing relevant to the product you are shipping. There's no proof that the vial you are sending contains 2400mg of Gluta. There's no proof that you put the indicated amount of lyophilized compound into the vial before reconstituting it. There's no proof you used the same bac water that was used for the sample sent for testing. Your COA is worthless and indicates nothing. Furthermore, choosing to ship a reconstituted compound—which is heavier, less stable, larger, and more fragile—instead of shipping vials of lyophilized compound suggests you intend to obfuscate what you are actually providing. I just looked at more of your products. None of your pictures even show lyophilized compounds in the peptide vials that aren't already reconstituted.
Well shit. Never mind. You guys aren't low quality. You are an outright scam.

I'm about to take this path, but I haven't confirmed what my initial dose will be. I'm at 6mg/week on the Reta currently. I think I'll dip my toes in by adding 250mcg of the Cagri.

@pep_researcher Right? Just tell them that you thought it was impossible for someone to live up to their full potential until you met them.

I still have my share of those people in my circle. There's my nephew that read about certain agonist peptides possibly accelerating pre-existing cancers. Now he applies that to every research compound. That BPC-157 is gonna give you cancer!

Tesa/Ipa, Semax/Selank

The Tesa/Ipa combo has helped so much with maintaining my body composition and shedding fat around my midsection while using GLP-1s. Bonus side effect is that I sleep better! I haven't found a downside to it yet.

I honestly didn't expect much from the Semax/Selank combo. Tried it because I'm always down to try something that will improve focus and mood. I feel like a Teflon coated bullet when I take it. My focus and energy are improved but I'm also less on edge. I've never taken anything else that has a stimulant effect without increasing my anxiety.

@Stevepep never would have predicted that I'd be saying this someday: I was going to see that happen. There's still a cloud of chaos using Indiamart, but it's a large platform with identity verification for their vendors, a rating system, and a semi automated brokerage tool. There's much more transparency than finding vendors in China via a broker on Telegram. India has a well established pharmaceutical industry with established standards and methods.
Indian peptides would probably be easier to access with much better QA/QC and reporting of it off it goes mainstream there.

@Juliano546 my experience with Tesa/Ipa has been really similar to @mr-smurf
My only negative side effect has been hunger. If I push it at night before bed it's not an issue. If I do it in the morning it overrides the Reta and fires up my appetite by midday. I take advantage of the timing, though. I'll curb my appetite with a snack, eat a decent sized meal late afternoon, fast the rest of the day, and take a second push of the Tesa/Ipa before bed. I always sleep really well those nights. I usually end up doing that every few days or so. Gotta keep my body guessing so my metabolism doesn't slow too much.

@MikeMiranda I can't PM you.
I'm waiting for a response from them regarding pricing details, but the vendor that I've used on Indiamart did mention to me that they could get glass vials.
bestindianpharmacy dot com
I can't post links right now for some reason.

@Juliano546 glad to be able to help!

Give it a shot. Lean into it and pack in the protein during the hunger episodes. Purely theoretical, but I feel like it's a good way to offset the days where the Reta has me struggling to get my protein and nutrients in.

@Blueeyedme they keep telling me that shipping is supposed to reopen by this weekend. Guess we will see! I have an order put together but don't wan to send the payment until the shipping issue is resolved.

The gassy thing is absolutely true for me, also. Dose day is Sunday. Gas day is Monday.

I've been looking for testimony about peoples' experiences with adding Cag to Reta. I've been encouraging a friend to try it because she is still having a lot of issues with food noise and habit eating at 6mg/week of Reta. I told her it may make sense to add Cag or Elora at a low dose to see if it's effective before titrating he Reta dose again.