What was your experience? I can't imagine it's any worse than the Misrad Hapnim itself.
The actual experience at the consulate was quick and painless - about 30 minutes on a Friday morning and a promise of my new passport arriving within a week.
What followed after was nearly 2 months of back and forth, making me jump through hoops, asking for an inordinate number of documents, claiming my army exemption status was questionable etc etc.
Eventually, I emailed the guy telling him my flight to Israel was in a week and I was getting on it with or without my passport. Miraculously it came in the mail a few days later.