Look, we are always trying to assign some sort of final verdict on every source. They are g2g, they are scammers, etc.
Millard has made this point before and it is very true. Most sources are somewhere in the middle - most sources have some good gear, have some bad gear, and all we can do is try to minimize our risk. But there is ALWAYS risk, because the sources have to rely on their raw providers, and NONE of them are testing every batch of raws, they just aren't. So even the ones who WANT and INTEND TO produce top line gear, are going to fall short sometimes.
And then of course you have the POS scammers.
Astro turned out to be an asshole. But to say that he was one thing all the time just kills the credibility of the person saying it. Some respected members here ran some very good gear from Astro. He was very hit or miss, but he def sold some very legit gear at times. One of the highest bloods I ever had was from Astro gear. The orange top cut mix he sold a couple of summers ago was some of the best gear I have ever ran, and I believe it was Fckit and maybe EBK (don't remember exactly) amongst others had the same experience with that cut mix.
Yes, he was an asshole. Yes, a lot of members were over the top with praise in his thread. But he also sold some really good gear at times. He sold some shitty/bunk gear too. Those things are all true. He wasn't just one thing - almost no source is.