I think it's a case of that my mechanic could, if he wanted to spend the time, build me a new wheel using the old rim and hub. But I'm sure, as with many things, it makes them more money and is easier for them to just sell me a new wheel. Kind of like why shops don't patch tubes- they don't make money on it. They make money selling new tubes. I've started taking a bike repair class on Thurs. and Sat. Today we'll be building wheels and then trueing them. So after today I'll have no excuse to take a wheel in to the shop to be fixed. Before I had the excuse of ignorance.
I'd say that I'm not entirely satisfied with the quality of my trek, but I do ride it a lot. Plus, it was involved in two crack ups last year (a minor altercation with a car and then a woman ran into my parked bike with her bike) I think one of those was when the grip shifter cracked and I just never noticed. The chain is probably my fault because I never checked the wear on it ever, if I'd replaced it when it was time, it wouldn't have pretzled my deraileur. The brake shoes and adjustments, that's just honest wear and tear, same with the front tire. The back tire was bad luck- a piece of glass making a hole that got bigger.