Who decides which Surname Project I belong in?

[TMS]

Scenario #1:

• I have taken FTDNA's Y-DNA 111-marker test.
• My given name is Rumplestiltskin.
• My paternal line has been traced and documented to 1800, there are no adoptions, and all males are Rumplestiltskins.
• I have nine Kadiddlehopper Y-DNA matches: 1 is an 111/111 match, 2 are 66/67, 2 are 65/67, 2 are 64/67, and 2 are 63/67.
• The only Rumplestiltskin match in sight is a 12/12 match in the Rumplestiltskin surname project.

[Jim Barrett]

Who decides which Surname Project I belong in?

You do!

[georgian1950]

You do!

Join both, though I do not think however the 12/12 match will amount to something.

[The_Contemplator]

As Jim said, you decide which project you join if you join any at all. You could contact that Y12 match and get him to upgrade if he only tested up to Y12. You could also try joining geographical and haplogroup projects.

[MoberlyDrake]

I would join both projects and I would pay close attention to Kadiddlehopper. Go back through the census records and see if there are neighbors with that name. One of your Rumplestiltskin's wives may have had an affair with a Mr. Kadiddlehopper. It happened to me. I had spent 10 years researching my family, but my cousin's Y-DNA test revealed we weren't who we thought we were. My great-great-grandmother had an affair with the neighbor.

Also do a Family Finder test and look for close Kadiddlehopper matches. I recommend testing at Ancestry also and looking for close Kadiddlehopper matches there too. If you can afford 3 companies, add 23andMe.