IM needle sizes and common practices

[psauce]

A lot of helpful info in this thread - just starting (endo prescribed) trt and they prescribed 25g 1.5”. Seems like I would be better off with 27g 1” (if not subQ). Do you all have a specific source you go to, or should I just buy nipro or bd from whatever pops up on google for lab supplies?

Not exactly the question you asked, but there's no reason not to go even narrower than 27g. On a TRT dose, you'll be injecting around 0.5 mL per week tops, so the wider bore doesn't really provide any benefit (saved time or avoiding hand cramping). You can avoid scar tissue and minimize the discomfort.

The only real downside is taking more time to draw, but since you've already got 25s from your physician, you can use them to load and swap to inject.

BD and Nipro are both fantastic.

 

[shredded.lyfe]

I've been looking into getting one. Do you know if the needle length is adjustable (meaning can I use a 1" needle tip for some injections and 1.5" for others) or are you locked in to using a specific length/gauge when you purchase it?

Also, what attachments?

The attachments solve the question you just asked

 

[EWIHEWIHEWIH]

Not exactly the question you asked, but there's no reason not to go even narrower than 27g. On a TRT dose, you'll be injecting around 0.5 mL per week tops, so the wider bore doesn't really provide any benefit (saved time or avoiding hand cramping). You can avoid scar tissue and minimize the discomfort.

The only real downside is taking more time to draw, but since you've already got 25s from your physician, you can use them to load and swap to inject.

BD and Nipro are both fantastic.

thanks for the heads up. he started me on 80mg every 10 days unfortunately, so I am just rolling with it. I have been doing subq though since it's such a tiny amount and its ok with a 31g insulin needle since it's literally 4 units.

what do you think would be appropriate needle size and length for 14 to 28u, assuming I move up to at least 100mg/wk and stick with ED or EOD dosing

 

[psauce]

thanks for the heads up. he started me on 80mg every 10 days unfortunately, so I am just rolling with it. I have been doing subq though since it's such a tiny amount and its ok with a 31g insulin needle since it's literally 4 units.

what do you think would be appropriate needle size and length for 14 to 28u, assuming I move up to at least 100mg/wk and stick with ED or EOD dosing

30 or 31 will work just fine.

As far as frequency and dosing, 80 mg/10 days (56 mg/week) is a good starting point for TRT to put you in the middle of the reference range, but you'd probably be better off injecting every 5th day just minimize the peak-trough effect.

Be really honest with yourself if you adjust your dose to 100 mg/week... that's about 180% of your current dose. For most guys, that is going to be a supraphysiological dose... performance enhancing, recreational use. That's not a knock; 99% of the people here are in the same boat. But you should know the extra risks and go in with open eyes.

Even then, I'd inject that twice a week at most. There's a tendency to over-optimize initially, but after a while you might find that there's no benefit to fucking with needles more often than you need to.