I feel your pain, Johnny. Perhaps it's a Huffy thing, but I can relate. I'm a "pincher." As a roadie, I can never find patches narrow enough for my tubes, and one of the edges always seems to peel up. My failure rate at patching is about 50%. I have had about 25% failure rate on new cheap tubes (< $5), so I have this approach:

1-I buy my tubes when they are on sale, like 4 for the price of 3, 5 for the price of 4, or just plain on sale, but I try to get "better" tubes.
2-I often get patch kits free from eBay sellers, etc. I use those exclusively. I'm done buying patches. I carry Scabs in my wedge bags.
3-I scrape and then sand the best I can, but no more than 3-4 minutes per tube, apply the patch, and wait overnight.
4-I test them the next day. If they hold, they go in a wedge bag, but not on a new build. If they fail, they get tossed.
5-I use a non-black valve cap on all patched tubes, so I can tell at a glance if the bike already has a patched tube.
6-Nothing gets patched twice. I used to be superstitious and patch them repeatedly, out of loyalty for their service. No more.
7-I only patch once or twice a year. A six of Yuengling, Pandora on Texas Guiitars, and I patch until they're done, and pass out.
8-When I trade parts, if they have nothing I need, I ask for new tubes.

My success rate at mounting and not pinching, indoors, with time, is about 99%. My success rate on the side of the road, about 50%.
Therefore, I prefer to be on either a new tube or a once-patched tube that held up overnight.

I've been on rides with guys who patched on the side of the road, didn't pull the wheel off, just pulled the tube out enough to get to it.
It was pretty impressive, until we had to do it again. And again.

My time is worth nothing, but I'd prefer not to spend it patching. When I do, it's more "therapy" than having to do it. So yeah, I can relate.