Priming the rebuilt engine question

Back in the beginning we never pre-oiled, but lubed everything well and never had an issue. Now my dad and I still lube the crap out of everything and pre-oil with a priming shaft until we get full pressure to the gauge then turn the motor over while priming then drop the distributor in and fire it up. If it doesn't fire quickly we stop and evaluate what is going on and not destroy the engine with fuel wash. Building an engine these days isn't cheap and having an issue can cost a lot of time and money to fix.