diff --git a/internal/reconcile/reconcile_test.go b/internal/reconcile/reconcile_test.go
index ec85af8..4cf8875 100644
--- a/internal/reconcile/reconcile_test.go
+++ b/internal/reconcile/reconcile_test.go
@@ -84,7 +84,12 @@ func TestReconcile_BaseAndUnsureVerdictsKeepTheBaseButOnlyUnsureIsFlagged(t *tes
 
 	assert.Equal(t, "Totalt 1015 kronor till SEB.", keptBase.Text)
 	assert.Zero(t, keptBase.Reconciliation.Unsure)
-	assert.Empty(t, keptBase.Reconciliation.Contested, "a confident 'the base is right' is not a spot worth the reader's time")
+	require.Len(t, keptBase.Reconciliation.Contested, 2,
+		"every judged spot is stored, kept ones too: without them the reconciler cannot be compared with either engine alone (ADR-035)")
+	for _, c := range keptBase.Reconciliation.Contested {
+		assert.Equal(t, "base", c.Used)
+		assert.False(t, c.Unsure, "a confident 'the base is right' is stored but is not an uncertain spot")
+	}
 	assert.Equal(t, "Totalt 1015 kronor till SEB.", unsure.Text, "unsure keeps the base")
 	assert.Equal(t, 2, unsure.Reconciliation.Unsure)
 	require.Len(t, unsure.Reconciliation.Contested, 2)
@@ -224,14 +229,16 @@ func TestReconcile_ACancelledJobIsAnErrorNotASkippedReconciliation(t *testing.T)
 	assert.ErrorIs(t, err, context.Canceled, "a shutdown must not be recorded as 'the model was unavailable'")
 }
 
-func TestReconcile_KeepsTheBaseSegmentsDurationAndNamesTheEngines(t *testing.T) {
+func TestReconcile_KeepsTheBaseTimingAndDurationAndNamesTheEngines(t *testing.T) {
 	base := tr("a x b")
 	base.Segments = []domain.Segment{{Start: 0, End: 4, Text: "a x b"}}
 	base.AudioSeconds = 3821.5
 
 	out := merge(t, base, tr("a y b"), always(reconcile.VerdictAlt))
 
-	assert.Equal(t, base.Segments, out.Segments, "the timed segments are the base engine's, untouched")
+	require.Len(t, out.Segments, 1)
+	assert.InDelta(t, 0.0, out.Segments[0].Start, 1e-9, "timing is the base engine's")
+	assert.InDelta(t, 4.0, out.Segments[0].End, 1e-9)
 	assert.InDelta(t, 3821.5, out.AudioSeconds, 1e-9)
 	assert.Equal(t, "iguana/pianissimo", out.Reconciliation.Base)
 	assert.Equal(t, "iguana/kb-whisper", out.Reconciliation.Alt)
@@ -264,18 +271,25 @@ func TestReconcile_WithNoSegmentsASpotIsPlacedProportionally(t *testing.T) {
 	assert.InDelta(t, 90.0, out.Reconciliation.Contested[0].Seconds, 1e-9, "token 9 of 10 in 100 s")
 }
 
-func TestReconcile_ContestedSpotsAreCappedButTheCountsAreExact(t *testing.T) {
+func TestReconcile_JudgedSpotsAreCappedButTheCountsAreExact(t *testing.T) {
 	a, b := make([]string, 0, 600), make([]string, 0, 600)
 	for i := 0; i < 300; i++ {
 		a = append(a, fmt.Sprintf("w%d", i), "same", "same2")
 		b = append(b, fmt.Sprintf("v%d", i), "same", "same2")
 	}
+	capped := opts
+	capped.MaxContested = 50
 
-	out := merge(t, tr(strings.Join(a, " ")), tr(strings.Join(b, " ")), always(reconcile.VerdictUnsure))
+	out, err := reconcile.Reconcile(context.Background(), tr(strings.Join(a, " ")), tr(strings.Join(b, " ")), always(reconcile.VerdictUnsure), capped)
 
+	require.NoError(t, err)
 	assert.Equal(t, 300, out.Reconciliation.Unsure)
 	assert.Equal(t, 300, out.Reconciliation.Disputes)
-	assert.Len(t, out.Reconciliation.Contested, reconcile.MaxContested, "the stored list is bounded; the counts are not")
+	assert.Len(t, out.Reconciliation.Contested, 50, "the stored list is bounded; the counts are not")
+}
+
+func TestReconcile_TheDefaultCapIsAFewThousandSoAWholeMeetingIsKept(t *testing.T) {
+	assert.Equal(t, 2000, reconcile.MaxContested, "a 90-minute recording has a few hundred judged spots; the cap is a guard, not a budget")
 }
 
 func TestReconcile_AVerdictReturnedAlongsideAnErrorIsIgnored(t *testing.T) {