Thanks everyone. My score is in the 770s, dropped down from low 800s since I started churning about 10 months ago. My spending is low so organically I can only go through 1 card every 2 to 3 months. After spending a few more hours reading the forums here I'm actually thinking about just continuing with one at a time - it'll save me the headache and fees of the gift cards.
I'm not planning on applying for a loan any time soon but will need to rent an apartment, though I've read that anything over a 720 is considered "excellent" so it's silly trying to preserve a score higher than that.
Any thoughts?