^^ I think I might do just that, thanks!
I'm definitely looking for a good 'value' which is why I asked about these hubs in the first place (though there are others at this pricepoint from other makers, I'm not specifically asking about the Wheel Masters brand).. There are also bike hubs on Amazon that are literally $5 shipped, so if cost were my only consideration, I would've just ordered those. But I figure if those are the bottom of the barrel, the ones that cost 5 times as much have got to be at least decent? Right?
I should clarify that part of the reason I'm doing this wheel build is a friend of mine wants some specific pattern of colored spokes. I've been wanting to learn the wheel build thing so I said hey, you pay for the parts and I'll build the wheel with the spokes you desire, solely for the experience. Win win for both of us. Probably.
She is not a bike commuter and I don't see her putting in thousands of miles on this or any other bike, so getting top of the line components would be a bit of a waste. I of course don't want to put in the time lacing up utter crap either, but spending $90 on a pair of hubs vs $50 is a very significant difference for her. Farther down the road who knows, but as far as I'm concerned, $150 over several years would not be a worse value than $90 right now. I mean, I don't see her getting stranded somewhere from using cheap hubs, like you would with a broken pedal.. (but if this has ever happened to someone who used cheap hubs, this is the kind of thing I want to hear about!)
And again, my base question is WHY are these not as good? I can understand old cup and cone design being dubious, but these claim to be "sealed" which I assumed meant they have some sort of bearing cartridge. I'm getting the impression now though that this may not be the case.
Somebody above said that the tolerances are not as finely controlled in the manufacturing process for cheaper hubs. This surely makes sense to me, but then wouldn't the same logic dictate that Shimano and Formula hubs for $40-50 must be garbage, since there are hubs out there that cost upwards of a grand?
And for the record, threading for a screw-on freewheel is in fact what I'm looking for. She doesn't want more than 1 gear so I plan to use a BMX style freewheel.