Making tape is probably cheaper than painter's tape, and Bruce wouldn't want to raise the $3 packing charge.
Just be more careful Crowman!
What you should be thinking about is making the hobby as green as possible. So, re-using tubes where/when possible. Most tubes i get from Emovie appear to be "new" tubes, which I eventually send back to them when sending consignments. Pandemic or not, I hope those tubes are re-used and not trashed. At the very least, they are 100% recycled. Same goes for the plastic caps. I sell shit on ebay and only use "used" materials and ask the buyers to recycle them. Never had anyone complain about their item arriving in an empty box of Raisin Bran.
All good companies should have an environmental strategy in place. Maybe Bruce can share some of that info with us. Certainly the "pay and hold" is a component I appreciate very much not just because of the cost-savings but for those reasons.
I would pay a buck or two more for materials if i knew they were part of that bigger sustainability strategy. This is why I stick to pre-1990 posters... way more biodegradable!