Coming from that time and personally knowing Walter Graeff, talking to him [at least on a weekly basis] at his Lebanon, Pa. Hobby Shop on Florence Street. Walter was a business dynamo and a heavy believer in the future of S scale long before most of us were. Walter was also a prominent Lebanon County attorney, so money was no object. In his day he always attend our conventions and had his Ace products manufactured in huge amounts. He believed in S scale and S Hi-rail. His shop was loaded with American Flyer and he was very disappointed in AC Gilbert and what they produced in their end time. That was his main reasoning for ACE products, so that we modelers could build our rolling stock.
Somewhere in my files I have a tape of Walter expressing much of this, and his hopes for a better S scale future taken in the 1960's at the Silver Spring convention. My, how I miss the good old days when model railroading was so much simpler and I'm sure we enjoyed it so much more than we do today. Even the fellowship was more amiable. I have in front of me a May 31st, 1972 ACE MODEL RAILROAD EQUIPMENT catalog. ACE Sprung Roller Trucks with scale wheels #00250 33" steel wheels $4.40. WOW! ACE #00600 1,000 self gauging ties for code 110 ... $11.50 ACE also had ties for the then popular code 172 rail. I have boxes of his good ACE stuff and of the stuff that didn't work out right either. I keep them as mementoes of better days and that perhaps a friend needs something, or just maybe I'll scratch build, or convert to scale another piece of rolling stock. Well anyway, please forgive me for longing for the good old days, but I do miss them and the great friendships of so many who have passed on to a better place. (Did you know that the ACE design and graphics were hand drawn by our dear friend, Frank Titman?) "S"incerely, Bill Fraley
