I have a trident that I bought from Randy Knight who started it from a seedling on a tile 20 some years ago. I got it 7 years ago, and I'm still working on just the trunk, but it had a nice base. They take lots of time! There's nothing wrong with jump starting the process by getting a nice trunk, yours looks great.
Edit: a Japanese maple that I'm developing from a seedling. In pots. Takes forever.