Great questions! Clincher, and yes I would consider a front wheel, but already have a rear hub I'm keen to use (and am looking for a nice retro front mtb hub to go along with it!).
It's nothing mega fancy but I have a pair of Mavic CXP 30 rims on black LX hubs that I could possibly sell the front only unless you want to do a deal on the front wheel and rear rim to use your rear hub ?