Did you check the pH at the end of that 6-day ferment, or just go by taste and crunch? I'm curious if the lower brine lets it hit that safe zone slower or if it rides the same line. That would be the main thing keeping me from trying it myself.

You ever think a solid flat surface is just solid forever? I used to think that too, until my 10 year old plywood table started showing a slight cup right under my T-square. I would line up a long horizontal line, and by the time I got to the right edge, it was off by a hair. Turns out the draftsman before me had left a full coffee mug ring right there, and the wood just gave up after years of that spot never getting air. Now I check with a straightedge every time I set up, and I had to shim the low corner with some folded paper scraps. It's a humbling fix, but it works until the humidity changes again.

You ever get that feeling the whole crew's just gonna be paid easy that day?