diff --git a/src/constants.js b/src/constants.js
index 7c4e75a..06f9af7 100644
--- a/src/constants.js
+++ b/src/constants.js
@@ -146,11 +146,12 @@ export const OAUTH_REDIRECT_URI = `http://localhost:${OAUTH_CONFIG.callbackPort}
 
 // Model fallback mapping - maps primary model to fallback when quota exhausted
 export const MODEL_FALLBACK_MAP = {
-    'gemini-3-pro-high': 'claude-sonnet-4-5-thinking',
+    'gemini-3-pro-high': 'claude-opus-4-5-thinking',
     'gemini-3-pro-low': 'claude-sonnet-4-5',
+    'gemini-3-flash': 'claude-sonnet-4-5-thinking',
     'claude-opus-4-5-thinking': 'gemini-3-pro-high',
-    'claude-sonnet-4-5-thinking': 'gemini-3-pro-high',
-    'claude-sonnet-4-5': 'gemini-3-pro-low'
+    'claude-sonnet-4-5-thinking': 'gemini-3-flash',
+    'claude-sonnet-4-5': 'gemini-3-flash'
 };
 
 export default {
diff --git a/src/format/request-converter.js b/src/format/request-converter.js
index 98a378c..3e97406 100644
--- a/src/format/request-converter.js
+++ b/src/format/request-converter.js
@@ -15,6 +15,7 @@ import {
     removeTrailingThinkingBlocks,
     reorderAssistantContent,
     filterUnsignedThinkingBlocks,
+    hasGeminiHistory,
     needsThinkingRecovery,
     closeToolLoopForThinking
 } from './thinking-utils.js';
@@ -77,15 +78,20 @@ export function convertAnthropicToGoogle(anthropicRequest) {
         }
     }
 
-    // Apply thinking recovery for thinking models when needed
-    // - Gemini: needs recovery for tool loops/interrupted tools (stripped thinking)
-    // - Claude: needs recovery ONLY when cross-model (incompatible Gemini signatures will be dropped)
+    // Apply thinking recovery for Gemini thinking models when needed
+    // Gemini needs recovery for tool loops/interrupted tools (stripped thinking)
     let processedMessages = messages;
-    const targetFamily = isClaudeModel ? 'claude' : isGeminiModel ? 'gemini' : null;
 
-    if (isThinking && targetFamily && needsThinkingRecovery(messages)) {
-        logger.debug(`[RequestConverter] Applying thinking recovery for ${targetFamily}`);
-        processedMessages = closeToolLoopForThinking(messages, targetFamily);
+    if (isGeminiModel && isThinking && needsThinkingRecovery(messages)) {
+        logger.debug('[RequestConverter] Applying thinking recovery for Gemini');
+        processedMessages = closeToolLoopForThinking(messages, 'gemini');
+    }
+
+    // For Claude: apply recovery only for cross-model (Gemini→Claude) switch
+    // Detected by checking if history has Gemini-style tool_use with thoughtSignature
+    if (isClaudeModel && isThinking && hasGeminiHistory(messages) && needsThinkingRecovery(messages)) {
+        logger.debug('[RequestConverter] Applying thinking recovery for Claude (cross-model from Gemini)');
+        processedMessages = closeToolLoopForThinking(messages, 'claude');
     }
 
     // Convert messages to contents, then filter unsigned thinking blocks
@@ -108,6 +114,8 @@ export function convertAnthropicToGoogle(anthropicRequest) {
         // SAFETY: Google API requires at least one part per content message
         // This happens when all thinking blocks are filtered out (unsigned)
         if (parts.length === 0) {
+            // Use '.' instead of '' because claude models reject empty text parts.
+            // A single period is invisible in practice but satisfies the API requirement.
             logger.warn('[RequestConverter] WARNING: Empty parts array after filtering, adding placeholder');
             parts.push({ text: '.' });
         }
diff --git a/src/format/thinking-utils.js b/src/format/thinking-utils.js
index 06bca85..14ce530 100644
--- a/src/format/thinking-utils.js
+++ b/src/format/thinking-utils.js
@@ -27,6 +27,21 @@ export function hasValidSignature(part) {
     return typeof signature === 'string' && signature.length >= MIN_SIGNATURE_LENGTH;
 }
 
+/**
+ * Check if conversation history contains Gemini-style messages.
+ * Gemini puts thoughtSignature on tool_use blocks, Claude puts signature on thinking blocks.
+ * @param {Array<Object>} messages - Array of messages
+ * @returns {boolean} True if any tool_use has thoughtSignature (Gemini pattern)
+ */
+export function hasGeminiHistory(messages) {
+    return messages.some(msg =>
+        Array.isArray(msg.content) &&
+        msg.content.some(block =>
+            block.type === 'tool_use' && block.thoughtSignature !== undefined
+        )
+    );
+}
+
 /**
  * Sanitize a thinking part by keeping only allowed fields
  */
@@ -434,14 +449,14 @@ function stripInvalidThinkingBlocks(messages, targetFamily = null) {
                 return false;
             }
 
-            // Check family compatibility if targetFamily is provided
-            if (targetFamily) {
+            // Check family compatibility only for Gemini targets
+            // Claude can validate its own signatures, so we don't drop for Claude
+            if (targetFamily === 'gemini') {
                 const signature = block.thought === true ? block.thoughtSignature : block.signature;
                 const signatureFamily = getCachedSignatureFamily(signature);
 
-                // Strict validation: If we don't know the family (cache miss) or it doesn't match,
-                // we drop it. We don't assume validity for unknown signatures.
-                if (signatureFamily !== targetFamily) {
+                // For Gemini: drop unknown or mismatched signatures
+                if (!signatureFamily || signatureFamily !== targetFamily) {
                     strippedCount++;
                     return false;
                 }
@@ -450,6 +465,7 @@ function stripInvalidThinkingBlocks(messages, targetFamily = null) {
             return true;
         });
 
+        // Use '.' instead of '' because claude models reject empty text parts
         if (msg.content) {
             return { ...msg, content: filtered.length > 0 ? filtered : [{ type: 'text', text: '.' }] };
         } else if (msg.parts) {