Originally Posted by
Darme
Sometimes buying new pre-made wheels are more cost effective then building building wheels then again in money is no object build on.
There are sometimes good deals, and I have one set of wheels that I bought already built. But many pre-made wheels are machine built and you have to check the spoke tension and give the wheels a final truing anyway. At least, I would never take a pre-made wheel purchased online, and just throw it on my bike without having it gone over by a skilled wheelbuilder first.
On a higher-end bike, that's part of the pre-delivery service performed by the LBS before delivering the bike to a customer. Most wheels, whether purchased separately or on a new bike, don't come out of the box ready to ride - they usually need a little tweaking. At least by my standards, anyway. I never break spokes and my wheels all stay true, and it's not because I buy "better" parts. It's because they're built right.