Complete Simulated recoveries! Your future self will thank you

Yesterday was payday so I went on Cashapp bought Bitcoin and transferred it to my Trezor wallet. The usual. By chance I decided to simulate a recovery event using my seed phrases. Trezor said seed phrases should be either 12 or 24 words. I have 20 seed phrases. After freaking out I realized that I had chosen a Shamir backup 3 years ago without doing my due diligence. I had one share but need 3 shares to gain access to my Bitcoin. I didn’t realize that I needed to write down all 3 shares. I only wrote one down. If I would’ve had an issue with my Trezor and needed my recovery seed, I would’ve been screwed and lost access to all of my Bitcoin. Thankfully I still have access to my wallet so I ordered another Trezor so I can transfer my funds into that new Trezor and do a factory reset of my old Trezor.

Moral of the story is to simulate a recovery event to make sure you have the correct seed phrases. If you made a mistake you can catch it while you still have access to your funds. I paid 69 for another Trezor which is worth it compared to the thousands I would’ve loss if I didn’t realize I made a mistake. When I factory reset I’m going with Bit39 over Shamir backup, Shamir may be “safer”but there’s also more room for mistakes if you lose a share.