Trying to fix my laptop = wasted lunch

It seriously was a waste of an hour, and I'm more than a little frustrated, given I could have been writing instead.  I also was left with a question regarding refurbished DVD/CD-R drives.

To recap: in order to get Norton to stop keeping me from acessing the internet, I need to reformat my computer.  To do that, I need a functioning DVD/CD-ROM drive.  So today, I decided I would get one from a local dealer.  I tried the two most likely choices, and called etech4sale, one while driving over to Central Computers.

What a waste of time.  Etech4sale put me on a phone tree, hung up on me, and then told me no one was available to take my call.  Central computers was there, but the geezer at the  desk could find only one laptop drive, and he was doubtful it would fit.  

So that was my lunch hour.  Now I'm considering buying a drive off the internet.  the question is, do I buy a new one for $130+ dollars, or a used one, for around $50.00?  Does anybody have experience with refurbished computer gear?