Oh my god this thread makes me feel so much better. It takes me about an hour to wrap bars as well because I always end up having to back up and rewrap and it takes like 4 tries to get the figure 8 around the hoods correct (though it doesn’t work with old hoods you can’t roll up the grippy part on).

I prefer a mix of comfort padding and style so I usually go with a $20-30 corkish tape with some cush. I have no brand loyalty. Whoever has the color and feel I want.