Bjames--
I'm going to take the side of the Gun Dealer.
I just about got ripped off by a Dealer/Distributor in Prescott, AZ) I wanted to trade a like new Bushmaster XM15A2 that I installed a Smith Brahe on. (the one with allen screws. I installed it right, and had to use a Dremmil tool th grind 4 indentations on the barrel.) I wanted to trade it and some cash for Thompson 1918A (semi-auto) Tom gun with a drum and 2 mags. This fool offered me $500.00 for my Bushmaster (like new cond.)because of the brake, and would not go down a bit on the Thompson. He had it marked $950.00. I walked away
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You took a $850 new rifle in to a dealer. He may pay about $700 for the same, and less if he is a distributor. You said it is like new--i.e.
USED. Therefore, he may sell it for $700 and want to make $100 or $150 on it. Which means he would give you $600 or $550 for it. But then you said you had a Smith Brake on it, and you "installed it right, and had to use a Dremmil tool". Basically, you messed up a perfectly good gun. Unless your name is Graham, Huffman, Baer, Wilson, etc. and your business is recognized as a legitimate gunsmithing operation, you further detracted from the value of the gun. $500 was probably generous on his part. If you Dremel the gun, you may have done something else to the gun--like adjust headspace, trigger work, etc. that is not readily evident on a casual inspecion.
$950 is not out of line for the Thompson 1927 with a drum (10 rd.). It may be slightly high, but that depends on the market in your area.
The only thing you did right was to walk away if you weren't happy with the deal.
Don't feel too bad, I did the same thing once on one of my guns, and learned my lesson the same way. And, the 1927 Thompson is OK--I had one and never shot it--it was far too heavy for a semi-auto pistol caliber gun. In a full auto version, it would be fun, but for the same money, you would do better to look at an UZI.