Hi Dennis,
I've been raising my own tomato seedlings for over 30 years and never potted up. As I mentioned, I do lift out and move about 30% of the seedlings to have a strong plant in the center of each pot, and this is equivalent to potting up, but in all these years I have never noticed that these plants were different than the others. All my plants are essentially equal, both in the pots and in the ground.
The only scientific study I have ever seen on the benefits of potting up was from 1927, and if I recall correctly the potted up plants did not produce a higher yield.
I've read that if the tap root hits the bottom of the pot that this also forces a fibrous root structure - perhaps someone with more knowledge can comment. Since my pots are 3.5" deep, the tap root hits bottom real fast, within a week or two. My plants are garden ready in 5 weeks, and the dirt balls are full of roots.
I do use heating pads and keep the soil temperature in the 80s F until all the seedlings are up, then remove them. The lights and fan are on timers, the lights for 16 hours and the fan for 3 hours/day.
TomNJ
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