Official solicitation for feedback:

I think I've done my reading, now (though I'm sure I'll get posted at least one link showing not quite enough of it), and I'm in the final planning stage - I'm ready to fire this off whenever, but was inclined to do it next Tuesday morn, a la the former CW here about processing, etc. (If that CW has changed, I may even go tomorrow? Advice?)

Summary, also in the quick summary:
I've decided to err on the side of not setting off red flags by applying for too many cards from the same issuer in the same category (i.e. biz, personal). That means (in all cases except the Chase and Citi, inquired about below), that there's only one card per issuer per category.
Important questions before finalizing the list:
1) Is that idea stupid? (Even in the current credit-crunch climate?)
2)I'm hoping to reallocate two personal Citi lines to a single new Citi card - I know Chase doesn't allow this, but are other issuers so touchy?
3)The second Chase biz card is only there because it seems like the FUSA one might be evaluated separately? (What's the relationship with Chase there?) If so, then I'll include the card, but if not then I think I'll likely eliminate it.
4)I'm strongly considering eliminating the second BoA (C2) because of Jack's insta-reject. My only reason for keeping it was if I needed a BoA clearinghouse card to BT to, but with no AM3X cards in the mix I'm wondering if that role is necessary. Will any of the issuers above not let me write a check to myself? (Unfamiliar with WF, Barclay's, and Advanta.)
5)Are any cards/issuer on my ignore list that shouldn't be? (See quick summary)
6)Finally: With such a small # of cards applied for, is app order as important? I know we have an interesting data point about insta-rejects after the first 6 EX hits, but am I going to hit that many? (Note that my EX record is clean of inquiries at the moment save one.) In any case, my app order is largely along the lines posted above, where I apply for top personal, then top biz, then 2nd personal, etc. Any card deserving of bump up or down the list?

Important thing to keep in mind here: I can't justify the lines I'm asking for with my own income; I'm riding off of my parents (demos in OP), and my "business" is small dollar eBay sales. So 2Cor I am not, if that affects the advice, as I imagine it does.

If it were me, I would consolidate your existing Chase cards into the 12-year-old card first, and consolidate all your AMEX into the blue. Maybe even let those report. Then fire.

If I may abuse y'alls wisdom for one more query (I've posted this in the biz-card thread because it seems like the answer is important and should be centrally located, but I also don't have the patience to wait to see if someone still reads that thread so I'll simulpost here and put any wisdom into that thread):

I (like most everyone) have done small "business" transactions for years, primarily via undocumented methods - so, more trips to the used bookstore/record shop, or throwing down shingles on a friend's roof, rather than a nice little 3Bay store or a more typical business. Technically, the "business" of Pangloss1980 has been operating since 1992 (sole propietorships in my state require no registration), but obviously we here at Pangloss1980 Inc. have had unimpressive growth in revenue (what with the focus on actual, normal employment). So, what's a boy to do come A0R time for his biz-card applications? 16 years and $200/yr in revenue is completely honest, if hard to document; but it also seems possibly less appealing than saying that the business of "me" is newer, fresher, and has only done $400 in transactions in 12 months (and saying the biz has been open less time). I'm definitely applying for biz credit (thanks to the many of you FWFers who have illustrated that yes, the dream can be mine too), but I'm just wondering what you all think the most attractive app would look like.

An addendum to that central question might be: As I have many, many quasi-fungible items (stamps, coins, books, cds, DVDs, instruments, athletic equiptment, redundant body organs), should I just go on a brief selling spree and give myself some decent #s? ("Decent"=$2k) Do I need to do 3Bay, or are personal checks from friends sufficient? (I'm not planning on getting FRed, but...)

On that note, I guess I'm a bit surprised I haven't seen discussion of some less... scrupulous FWFers getting checks (for FR purposes) from their friends for objects that may or may not remain in the possession of the payee.

I guess I'd press the question for two reasons:

1) Credit conditions are tightening, so I certainly can't expect the results gained even a few months ago by others with comparable information provided to issuers

2) Biz credit, given that it doesn't report _and_ that I'm applying for the fatty cards for the first time, is easily the most important variable in all of this - far, far more can likely be gained by improving my business profile than by any of the other things I've been fiddling with, like finding the best card, the order to apply for them, consolidating lines, etc.

Also, I think the question is probably one faced by a very significant portion of FWers - we don't have a real business, but we've always gathered some cash on the side. Hell, just selling your textbooks back nets you a decent bit of coin.

So, I guess I'll lay out the variables, and maybe some of you will find it easy to answer quickly then?

Variable 1:
A) Report 6 years in biz (I've obviously been selling stuff for longer, but I'm 28 and don't want them scratching their heads and saying "He started up when he was 12?")
B) Report 1 year in biz (Now I look like a start-up, so maybe look better for growth potential?)

Variable 2:
A) Report $200 in revenue last year - stuff I've already sold, though through undocumented methods (used book store, etc.)
B) Report $1.2k in revenue last year - stuff sold plus A0R profits
C) Report $45k in revenue last year - I did cash all those A0R checks for that much, so technically my A0R one-man-show pulled in a very decent revenue stream, even if the income off of that was much less

Variable 3: (Presumably only important if choosing 2a or 2b)
A) Get a check from a few friends for $2k worth of items that I could "sell" for the purpose of having documented income. I don't feel bad about this because I have been selling stuff, just never thought to keep the receipts!
B) Don't bother.

Right now I'm torn between {1B 2B 3A} and {1B 2C 3B}. Any thoughts?

2B but I'm biased as this effectively is what I used.

Thanks to all for their input and advice! Trigger gets pulled tomorrow, 10:00 AM Eastern.

How issuers will see me tomorrow:

Inquiries: 2 (Target card in January; Bank account inquiry in May)
New Accounts: 1 (Target card in January)
Age: 28
HHI: 200k (conservative here - my actual HHI approaches 300k, but I don't want to weird them out)
Business: Sole propietorship, 12 mo in operation, $1.2k in revenue (thanks for the input on deciding how to present this)
Current FICO scores: depends on bureau, but between 776 and 798.
Current outstanding credit: $100k in cards
Current outstand debt: $500 on daily spender

Card app order, unless last minute suggestions of revision:

Candidate New Lines

                                                Expected/Actual   
Card ID  Issuer  Card Name     Period  BT Fee   Bureau Pull      
C1     BoA       PlatPlus      12      0        EX/?       Really hoping for this one - already have a decent line                              
                                                           with them, and would love to shift it to a 12 mo card      
C9     Advanta   Plat Biz      15      90        EQ/? 
C3     Chase     Plat MCard    12      75       EQ/?       Chase also important to me, with a $20k line already there.
C4     Citi      Ass. Bank     12      0        EQ/?       Discussion   If I do a Citi Biz card, can I only do one personal?
C10    Citi      CitiBiz       12      0         EQ 
C12    Chase     Chase Biz     15      99        EQ   
C5     Wells F.  Vis Plat.     9       0        ?/?        
C11    Barclay's BankAtlantic  15      75        TU/?  
C6     Barclay's IFLY          12      50       TU/?       Barclay's is new territory for me...
C7     USBank    Linux         12      0        EQ/?       Ditto USBank
C8     Discover  More ?        12      75       TU or EX?  Discover has been left off some prominent recent AORs, but
                                                           I haven't seen an explanation.
C2     BoA       Pet Rewards   6       0        EX/?       A second BoA card to use as a clearing-house for my       
                                                           other cards?  Reasonable?
C13    Chase     Chase Cash    12      99        EQ  
C14    Discover  Disc Biz      6       75        ?

Yikes.

Just had to talk with a BoA rep - I was just trying to see what the app status was, but got transferred to a ninja. Had to answer more questions than I wanted to (particularly because my demographic information is less impressive the more you know), and ended up getting a smaller new line than I thought my profile deserved - $7500 - but fortunately BoA is still golden for easy consolidation, so I added my old line to it and made it a $27k line. Since the card has 12mo and $0 fee I'm still fairly pleased, even if I did have visions of a 40k card (after consolidation) dancing in my head. Unless I hear otherwise, I'm going to hope they don't get itchy and use 89% of this sucker ASAP.

Moral: Don't call if your demographic information isn't as pretty as it looks on paper - more detailed questions when you're talking to a person rather than filling out a standard app. Just let your app run through as it will.

[Edit: changed "paper app" to "standard app," meaning the normal on-line dealie, because that's what I meant.]

Update on Wells Fargo:

I think these guys are showing themselves to be not worthwhile for anyone. Summary of me vis-a-vis this issuer, and my conversation with their ninja - who, to be fair, doesn't quite measure up to the name... more like the black knight in Monty Python, trying to seem competent when in fact he had no legs or arms.

Me and WF:
PMA (high-end) customer with them, because of my high balances in accounts with them ($45k in brokerage, and a checking and savings account that recieve direct deposits from various employers). Been with them 4 years or so, always been a golden customer.

Application: Thought I followed my link for a 9mo 0%; when approved it was for 6mo 0%, with $4000 limit instantly given.

Following phone-call: I call their Dark Knight, who spends 20 minutes trying to figure out what I had just applied for ("Mortgage? Uh, no... Unless you want to lend me $300k for 30 yrs at 0%?"). Finally incorrectly identifies the offer I applied for as 6mo, says I should mail in the terms I thought I had applied for. On the comical CL, says "We take everything into account, and give the highest possible CL based on all the information we gather [I applied to them rather early in the process, so they shouldn't have been seeing any more than 4 inquiries]; you can use the card for 9 months [minimum] and then ask for a CLI, and also take this pineapple and stick it up your ass." I'm paraphrasing, but at the end of the day I just don't know if these guys are productive to consider for applications. The fee is $0 for first 30 days, so I guess I'll BT $3k just so I'm actually using it and maybe they'll give me a real offer for 3.0; but given that it seems there may be a premium these days on minimizing inquiries, I think WF can be added to the "ignore" list, no matter what your relationships is with them.

Pangloss1980 said:I was rejected immediately due to freeze on my EX... go for it if you don't mind the added EX inquiry... from the sounds of it though (demographic concern), you may be better to let the dog lie...

Hmmm, shoot, didn't know that. I've already chatted with the ninja once today - is anyone able to tell me about Barclay's, Advanta, and USBank in terms of getting BT money into your checking? That is, do I need a BoA card as a clearinghouse for them?

I've forgotten what the rule of thumb is on using BoA as a clearinghouse multiple times in same month, and now am getting itchy now before the end of the day...

Re-answering half of my own question:
Citi, Chase, Advanta and Discover all write a check to bank (is the plan). Barclay's may with the personal card but not business? USBank most likely does not (a bit unclear). The question that still hangs, then, is whether I can use the clearinghouse BoA card twice in one billing cycle without pissing them off?

US Bank will send a check to any bank and account you want - just give them the bank name, address, and account number. I just received my $10k BT from them in my FNBO savings today (applied 2 weeks ago, the $10k balance showed up on the CC last week).

I'd go for the BoA biz. They'll most likely come through with capped-fee checks in a few weeks.

ETA: If they're uncapped, you can always call and negotiate, asking for no-fee. Sometimes it works.