I rather go to the cashiers. they don't know much, and will most of the time just follow your instructions.

I never once had them ask me for my ID (for the AGC I am using, or the AFT I am loading).

I've only ever been ID'd at the check out lines. At CS desk, they don't even look at the cards. I do 3 or 4 at a time, $1K each, and no one asks any questions.

Hmm...maybe I should try at CS desk.

They IDed me and checked to make sure my ID matched the AFT cards.

do you do it in one transaction?

Nope, separate transactions. I use a $1K AGC and then pay the fee with another CC, usually something I want to out some small 1x spend on like my Ink.

I just tell them to load 997:)

Hmm, you guys got better systems down than me!

Unless they start asking why I'm paying with two cards I'd rather just load the full thousand on there. Like I said, it lets me put a lot of little 1x spends on a card I most use for category spending at office supply stores or gas stations.

When I was getting family members to first register the cards though, I did tell them to ask to load $497 since I gave them $500 AGCs to register with.

I don't think everything goes through the credit bureaus. There is a "sub-culture" business, lack of a better term, that operates on accumulation of "meta-data", if you will, currently referred to simply as information publicly available. This is what seems to be the vehicle that is contacted through automation to "verify" peeps and is no doubt available through the interaction of all those privacy policies that we all submit to when we ask for/apply for various financial instruments (CCs).

Actually, that's a good idea for those who of us who like to think in terms of $500 per card use.

Definitely, Love the Mid West for MS! Live in Florida and never saw a AFT kit in the last 5 months since I started living there. and then I come to for work to the mid west and the minute I set foot into a Target, lane #6 has the magic packet. only open lane is #1 with absolutely noone but the cashier. she tells me "son, I have never sold one of this in the 5 years I ve worked here, so you help me" :rolleyes: Piece of cake!! She even loved the FL DL and told me she would love to retire there. WOW, here I can MS and feel loved :p

they sent the replacement cards by UPS next day air... Impressed.

I am learning this method slowly. Registering online has been frustrating.

I can only see loading about $2500 per card per month, to make any sense. The lowest ATM fee found so far has been $2.50 but it was out of town. Locally, it's been $3.00 per $400 withdrawal.

I did comment on Frost but haven't been near one with the AFT yet. Hope to be near that today. One dollar difference doesn't seem like much until you multiply it. So, if Frost is $2 per WD, it will be a glass half full...of ice water, a staple in near 100 degree temp days. :D

I tried CVS near home only to find out the ATM is not a Cardtronic but a Chase affiliation. It also has the Allpoint affiliation. $3 a pop! :rolleyes:

I am doing straight buying with CCs right now. Am I to understand that buying GCs at a bonus rate and churning them into AFTs is the best method? Unfortunately, the local grocer does not sell $500 variables, so no bonus CB there. No Ink, so that method is not for me, either.

The only other current method would be the BOA Amerideal for 10% CB for Staples but that just covers $125.00 purchase. I suppose that would be alright to cover two of the $3 charges if I buy the $200 GC, but that cuts back on the travel miles and points I need to accumulate.

Any other suggestions, please? Only other thing I can think of is the drugstore VGCs. But, mentally, it doesn't seem helpful except through Amex Surpass HH. Not my specific focus right now. Or back to Simon but that seems like double cost, $2.95 + $3 +$3. My CB return on that would only be 1.5%. And, the hassle. Hmmmm and again, not as many travel miles/points accumulated.

I don't like the sound of a gloomy Gus...:(

TIA.:)

I did not use except for min spend until above posters mentioned liquidating AGC through it.

Now I can't get AGC fast enough

Yeah, the real key is finding the (ideally) fee free ATMs.
Otherwise, things get expensive real fast, and you end up using it for min spend only.
There's a thread on fee free/cheap ATMs, but I assume you already know about it.

Yes, thank you. :)

I have reviewed it ad nauseam. Nothing near me to help out. I still think a genuine free in my area is going to be at a military base, which is about 35 miles roundtrip.

Update: Finally near a Frost Bank ATM today. Fee: $2 bucks, as previously mentioned but I hadn't had time to verify til today.

But, the best ATM I found today was in the Costco. It was a Cardtronic and sponsored with FirstMark Credit Union. Fee: $1.25. The lady at the front tried to refuse me entrance. I told her I would go stand in line at the membership line then. And, I did....briefly.

I was curious if the actual FirstMark CU ATM would have the same rate, so since it was close, I swung by the branch. NOPE! The fee there: $3. I thought maybe it would alleviate me having to negotiate future entrances into Costco. Alas, guess not. I also checked Security CU before I hit Costco right next door. Fee: $3.00

So, I need to join Costco at $55 to use the atm. Seriously, I was escorted by an employee over to it.

Hey, I forgot about Sam's and it's closer! @:-) Update: Forgot the name. Fee: $1.75. Limit: $300 WD.