Just my 2C
I have been using a Lufkin 25 foot 3/4" tape for the last 30 years. The first thing I did was unwind a few time to take the pressure of the tape. The tape has always closed quickly but the last foot is without much power. I figure 30 years for a tape measure is a good deal.
https://mechanicfaq.com/tape-measures-for-woodworkers/" . I have only had that one for 25 years. Did the same release of tension when I first got the tape. It is a cheap tape without a lock, black plastic case that has a hole broken in one of the corners. But the tape still works without and hangs and is easy enough to read.
My wife decided I needed a new tape a few years ago. She got me a Craftsman 30 foot 1". The tape works okay. I don't care for the action, it is larger in the hand than I like but sometimes it's the tape I see in my shop when I want to measure something so I use it.
I know some people will wrap tape at the tip so there is a "shock absorber" when the tape retracts.
