IIRC, almost all of the Russian M45s that've been imported were arsenal refurbed when they were withdrawn from active service and replaced with AKs. I've seen them with both bright and blued/blackened bolt carriers and/or bayonet blades.
One give-away as to whether it's been FTRed (Brit term: Factory Thorough Repair) or not is the presence of a second reinforcing bolt in the stock at the rear of the receiver, especially on the laminated stock models. If it's there, it has.
I have a Tula '54 that I bought several years ago. I knew that it had been refurbed, but it didn't bother me as I bought it as an artifact that I could shoot and compare with my Polytech T56.
IMO, unless one is a 'serious' collector the rework is a plus. At least you can be relatively certain that things were returned to spec before it was put into reserve storage. Whether the bolt carrier was left bright or blued/blackened likely depends on how the surface polished up after it was turned in or SOP wherever it was done.
I only paid $169 for mine, but that was several years ago when there were lots of them coming in. $250 doesn't sound all-that-unreasonable for one in excellent condition now.
Personally, I prefer my Polytech for shooting. It will group into half what the Tula will regardless of the ammo used. While it doesn't have the milled trigger group housing or screw-in barrel that some insist are 'better', it's demonstrably superior where it really counts. With that chrome lined chamber and bore, I doubt that anyone is likely to be able to shoot enough to wear it out, so 'pinned, or not' is pretty much moot from a practical standpoint.