Typewriter Talk / Stapler

**Posted by OregonJim** 08-1-2023 16:51:19

In my quest to (re)acquire all the long lost trappings of my early years, I've finally found one more piece:

The Ace Pilot 404 desk stapler.

This and the Swingline Tot 50 complete my memory of the staplers I owned and used from my pre-teens through high school. Ah, memories!

**Posted by colrehogan** 21-1-2023 10:52:12

Nice! I remember these as well!

**Posted by OregonJim** 21-1-2023 12:31:02

Someone told me that these are still being made. Maybe it's a silly notion, but I wanted to find one in the same age bracket as my original.

**Posted by Uwe** 21-1-2023 13:42:35

With respect to a stapler, I'd try to source the original as well. Definitely not a silly notion. However, there are some cases when I prefer modern technology in old packaging. For example, I bought a Grundig radio a few years ago that looks - to me at least - almost identical to a 1955 Majestic model. The tuning dial has that same soft glow, plus it actually sounds like an old radio (in a good way), and yet I can connect my smartphone and stream old classic and jazz recordings through it.

**Posted by OregonJim** 21-1-2023 20:08:31

Oh, you hit a nerve there, Uwe! I much prefer the old analog superhets over modern digitally synthesized radios. The sound difference is like night and day. Well, at least it USED to be, before we got so much RF pollution from cell phones and wifi and bluetooth and... Now there's so much digital noise out there that it's hard to get that pure analog sound anymore, even with an analog radio. And since computers replaced live DJs back in the 90s, we lost all the good programming. Anyway, I always liked the design aesthetics of Grundig radios...

**Posted by Uwe** 22-1-2023 09:20:40

My hunt for an old radio did start off with original models. However, my priority was that it worked reliably on a day to day basis, and I didn't want the chore of having to attempt a repair or source parts, It felt like a more practical (and realistic) option for me to combine modern electronics with vintage aesthetics. If radios are someone's hobby, much like typewriters I can see only being interested in the real deal and enjoying the process of bringing an otherwise dead model back to life.

**Posted by colrehogan** 22-1-2023 20:46:38

There is a cabinet radio in my parents' basement. It worked the last time I turned it on, but don't ask me when that was!

**Posted by Pete E.** 20-7-2023 10:06:11

Got this Ace Fastener Co. "Aceliner" Model 502 stapler in this past week.

This model was made for over 50 years with very few changes.

https://americanstationer.wordpress.com/2020/03/01/ace-aceliner-model-no-502-stapler/

I was hoping its mint-colour would be a match for the key-tops on my Hermes 3000. Close but not quite the same.

Stapler is very well made and after a cleaning and a few drops of oil, it is perfect. Even takes modern-day staples. It is a heavy, compact stapler and all of its chrome looks factory-fresh. Rubber feet show slight wear but are still supple.
.

**Posted by fountainpensplus** 20-7-2023 19:09:11

Nice score Pete! Even though it's not a match it is a trifecta of tone and shape. I find the rounded designs much more appealing than sharp edges.

George

**Posted by Pete E.** 20-7-2023 21:03:06

Hi Geroge,

I also have this brown bakelite Ace Model 502 coming in as well.

Thought it would be a good fit for my Smith-Corona Pacemaker.

These staplers will easily out-live me and could easily last 100 years.
.