perhaps put yourself in the gunsmith's position; if the work is on an inexpensive gun in poor condition, does the value of the gun justify his fee and further does he want his name associated with repairs to that gun. I am not saying that the gun belonging to the OP actually meets the above description but that may be the gunsmith's assessment of it.
cheers mooncoon
Y'know, I have lot more respect for a businessman that simply tells me he does not wish to have anything to do with a job, than one that feeds me a line of excrement about why not.
There are a lot of jobs that will come in to a gun shop that exceed the value of the gun being worked on. It really should be up to the client to decide. If the estimate is given, and the client wants it done, take the money, do the work. Or simply tell the client that it is not gonna happen, and why, truthfully.
Cheers
Trev