First Try At Tonkotsu

Just got back from Japan and now totally obsessed with ramen. This is my first pass at tonkotsu. Used all femur bones (and a piece of fat back per ramen_lord) for the broth. Cooled in in the fridge and skimmed a thick layer of fat off of the top. The broth completely solidified due to all of the gelatin. Is that normal? When I finally re-heated the broth, which melted easily, and I assembled the ramen, the broth was much thinner and less creamy than what I had in Japan. Did I skim too much fat? Also, when I added the tare (also per ramen_lord) the broth turned from creamy white to more of a pale tan – a color I don't recall seeing in Japanese Ramen I ate. Finally, I made the noodles with a 36% hydration and found the dough very dry and nearly unworkable. It took a LOT of kneading and passes through an electric pasta roller to get it to cohere. The final product was great but took a ton of work. In a cooking class in Osaka we made ramen with 45% hydration that was MUCH easier to work. Those noodles had a fine chew just like the 36% ones I made. Any thoughts or comments on these issues? Thanks for caring and sharing!