IHP O scale Brill Bullet Page
O scale BRILL BULLET


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The Brill Bullets were built in 1931 for the Philadelphia & Western Railway to compete with the parallel Pennsylvania Railroad for high-speed passenger service to Harrisburg. Unfortunately, the curvy line stopped short at Norristown but was able to develop into a successful high-speed rapid transit line which is still in service today. The cars were built by J.G. Brill, and were designed in a wind tunnel. They made use of lightweight aluminum in their construction and were able to achieve speeds near 100mph, the fastest of the time. The cars survived under Philadelphia Suburban Traction, then red arrow, and finally, SEPTA. When they were retired, they had logged nearly two million miles of revenue service in sixty years. The last cars were retired in 1993. A few are preserved at museums.

IHP presents the first O scale model of this vehicle. We first announced it in 2000, but were unable to produce it due to circumstances at the time. It will be available as a nonpowered body kit. The kits consist of a one-piece cast-plastic body, resin underbody details, resin body details, cast metal truck sideframes and third rail shoes, and other cast metal details including dummy couplers and stirrup steps. The modeler will need to supply material for a floor (a floor cutting template is included), power trucks, interior details and whatever decals and paint are to be used for decoration of the model.

The kit can be powered with Q-Car Co. trucks. Use the PCC trucks and use the kit's sideframes in place of the PCC details.

Availability: NOW. Production is limited.br>