Pappy,
Why not use a three-step step stool? My layout is 40" tall. I'm not the tallest person at 5' 4" with 31" arms. My non-folding step stool is made of sturdy stainless steel. When not in use it stores under my layout. There are no areas of my track that I cannot reach.
I have such a step-stool and it reaches almost all of the areas of the layout. However, there's a spot or two that, in order to reach them with the stool, I must clear out a large area of a yard, put down plywood and then climb up on the table. That's where a grabber would come in handy.
