Customer Reviews

History of the J. G. Brill Company (Series: Railroads Past and Present)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is fantastic - it's remarkably informative and the amount of research that went into this book is evident on every page!!

Fundamentally I agree with the first four reviews of this book. Well written and an easy, interesting read. Much, much valuable information on the company and the people that brought together the talent, the business acumen and the gifted craftsmen that gave Brill its deserved reputation for quality.
Ms. Brill has a clear and clever writing style that keeps your interest without burdening you with unnecessary details. She has achieved a very good balance between telling the story and providing technical details. Her extensive use of line drawings, patent application drawings, ads, and other visuals provide a greater depth of understanding of technical matters.

The only complaint I can voice about this book is the poor production of some of the photos.

Listed here are some comments that I feel would have made it a better book.

1. a complete builders' list of the production would be very helpful to both railfans, railroad museum volunteers, modellers, etc.

2. a list of subsequent owners until the destruction or scrapping would be invaluable also to railroad researchers.

3. a complete listing of the various Brill trucks with comments on the differences between the variations on each.

4. a more consistent rendering of the photos in the book would be extremely helpful. (Some of the shots are so poorly reproduced that they are almost useless. Poor contrast and muddy overall appearance are the principal complaints. Examples - p 4, lower shot on p 65, lower shot on p 67, p 69, lower photo p 103, p 114, etc.)

5. more line drawings of technical items including trucks and elevation drawings of cars would increase the value of the book greatly.

A superb book. Very well researched and complete. More than just the story of a family and the successful business enterprise they built, it brings to life an earlier era. Debra Brill has a marvelous writing style and I hope she continues to write for our enjoyment. Much less dry and more enjoyable to read than most histories. Highly recommended.

This is an extremely well done book. It arrived and I immediately sat down with it to read through several chapters and enjoy the history of a far-reaching company and the good products it was known to produce. Only shortcoming I could see is the lack of a complete history of each car built and for whom. That would help both railfan and modeler to have the detail many look to find in dealing with a rail manufacturer. Especially enjoyed the early history of Brill....

As a modeler of a Brill car on the Central Vermont Railway, this book was only moderately helpful, but as a German-American of Hessian descent this was an interesting book. Learned more about Brill Cars outside of the gas-electric model on the Central Vermont and have a great reference for the trucks used on Brill cars. Very helpful list of museums where Brill cars can be seen as well as sources for additional information and photos.

My wife and I are active volunteers in the local trolley museum and this book is invaluable in the restoration of some of the Brill cars we are working on as well as giving us a sense of the history behind those units in the museum's collection.