I see some 700c available online for like $47 but it’s difficult for me to trust HuiFanXiaoGenHeyu again after last time and the cheapest recognizable brand I can find seems to be Mavic with some ~$130 wheels (each (before shipping)).
I’m not averse to installing the spokes to the rim myself (lace it up!) but that just adds to the equation “which spoke brand” and “which rim brand” and “which tire brand?” But I would absolutely love to hear some input on exactly those questions.
Something to add to that is that I respect the importance of reducing weight for extended use and performance, but I personally don’t care about weight, I could carry you up the mountain and a heavier bike can cruise farther. What I really care about is something solid that it won’t be destroyed easily and that isn’t poorly manufactured punctured tube machines.
I use any cheapo double walled rim, and cheap spokes. i normally use like 36hole hubs, so pretty resilient, with that many I don’t think it really matters. I guess it might if you had a lot fewer spokes.
Also i use 35mm tyres which spreads the load too, i personally value comfort, resilience, bump handling, and low maintenance over speed.
As for Tyres , i do spend money on those. Schwalbe marathon plus on pretty much every wheel as soon as it wears thin. I’ve never had a puncture on those. They’re probably considered slow and heavy, by people who aren’t me.
Context is I use mine for urban transportation on mostly bike paths, some park routes. old tram tracks that can be shonky and bumpy, and a bit of road occasionally, but plenty of rough damaged tarmac as well as the smooth stuff. I’m pretty slow.
I think the terrain really matters when choosing tyres - and i’d err on the side of fatter up to 32/35mm just to accommodate uncertainty.