Is this SCOBY ready to go?

I'm trying to start myself a SCOBY so I can make kombucha. I started up a 1 gallon starter with a bottle from a local brewer. It's been going 4 weeks now and looks like below. Is it big enough to start a real batch? It seems thin to me.

It's pretty thin. It could possibly take a few batches before it will get really thick, but I think you can certainly make a full-on batch with it. In fact, some people have proposed that you don't really need the scoby, because the bacteria and wild yeast are also present in the little bit of kombucha that you transfer over to the next batch.

If you're feeling unsure, just brew up another batch and let it ferment out all the way.

Will it keep growing if I just let it ride for a bit more? I mostly want it to get a bit thicker so I feel more confident in handling it. I know breaking it won't kill it or anything, but it seems like it could get messy fast if it doesn't stay together.

How big of a batch are you planning to brew? I would add the scoby you have and some (or all) of your starter batch to help kick off the next batch.

Give it a taste too and see how it's coming along.

I'm only planning on a gallon. I'm going to pull two cups from this starter to add to the real batch when I get it going. I'll taste it when I get home but I expect it to be very sour. This is just to get my SCOBY started so I'm letting go as long as it will grow. It smells like kombucha though, no off-smells or anything.

I'd just take a cup or two of the fermented tea from that jar and the SCOBY you have and drop it into a fresh batch of sweet tea.

If you accidently mangle it a bit, it's not going to hurt anything. It'll grow back together.

There's no real reason not to do that, it's not like this is expensive so I'll do that tonight. Stupid analysis paralysis.

Waited a couple days but finally started a new batch. This SCOBY is kinda thin but pretty tough. I'll actually be drinking this next batch.