I played the guitar and it sounds glorious. It doesn't have back bow, just a slight forward bow. Even though these had no adjustable truss rod until 1985 (according to the UMGF and what the owner was told), Martin made them well. Many of the pre-truss D-35s have some of the straightest necks for guitars that old and without the rods. Martin was doing something right in the "metal era".
It was odd though, the binding around the fretboard looked off. Right as the neck joined the body the binding was stark white but the rest of the binding on the fretboard and around the bout were an ivory, yellowish color. That is why I asked him whether it had ever had a neck reset. He bought it used and said the previous owner who told him "no". I got the impression seller was the original owner, but did not disclose that this particular model didn't have a truss rod. My friend is primarily an electric player who just got back in the game, saw how great of condition the guitar was in and clicked "buy". He didn't think to ask.
We both agree $2K is way high and I thought $500 was the going rate and seems reasonable. I still think he have have some years left before he would need to do it. It plays fine with no buzz and pretty darn good action. However, the bridge looks like it has been shaved and the saddle was pretty low too. So, not much place to go except a luthier eventually.
Thanks for the responses so far but if there are others I'll be following the thread! Oh, jim1960 we are both in Colorado.