So here's a question that I don't think has been answered:
Why do so many of you only secondary when dry hopping, oaking, adding fruit, etc.?
It sounds like some will dry hop in primary but why not the other options?
For heavy items, like oak cubes, spirals, staves, pieces of fruit, or when adding more than a tiny amount of liquid, you introduce less oxygen if you rack onto the item than adding it into primary. IF you can gently add the item to the brew, then you could do it in primary too. Whole hops, IMO, are so light that you'll not get any, or enough, oxygen introduced with them to do any harm.
I will let a brew finish before I add other flavor elements to it. IF I have it on one element (in primary, or another vessel) and I need/want to halt that flavor contribution before adding another, I'll rack. Otherwise, everyone goes into the pool. :rockin:
I've added preliminary additional flavor elements into primary before. I've then racked off of them when I've felt the flavor is where I've wanted it, into another vessel so that I could introduce another element. I've not yet decided if I'll rack any of the brews I'll be oaking in the future. It really depends on if I'm using cubes, spirals, or staves to oak. If something I can gently lower into primary, I probably will do that. Although, I suppose it's better to not have the oak resting in the yeast cake. Especially if I plan to use it for another batch (spirals or staves, not cubes and chips)...
If you're trying to figure out when to rack for additional elements brew a recipe, ferment half each way. Rack one as the old mentality would have you do, and the other as more conventional wisdom is saying. Bottle at the same time (or keg) and try them side by side. I'd wager that if they're not identical, then the long primary batch will be better...
IMO, the less times you touch the brew, once you pitch the yeast, the better the result... Eventually you'll learn when certain OG range brews will be ready for the next step. You just need to brew enough batches to get that knowledge. Sounds like an excellent reason to brew more to me.