InterMountain - 60051 - Wheel, Rail - 12-pack

Specific Item Information: N scale Nickel Silver Plated Brass Insulated Wheelsets
*These wheels follow NMRA RP-25 standards. One wheel is insulated from the all-metal axle, and the entire wheel is non-magnetic. *The axle length is 0.55". *Wheel diameter is .225" *36" wheels are used on 100 ton capacity cars (CAPY approximately 200,000 LBS), and on all passenger cars no matter the era. *Cabooses can use either 33" or 36" wheels depending on the prototype.

Prototype History: A train wheel or rail wheel is a type of wheel specially designed for use on rail tracks. A rolling component is typically pressed onto an axle and mounted directly on a rail car or locomotive or indirectly on a bogie (UK), also called a truck (North America). Wheels are cast or forged and are heat-treated to have a specific hardness.
Railroad car wheels are affixed to a straight axle, such that both wheels rotate in unison. This is called a wheelset.

Wheels and wheelsets are found in various diameter and axle length. This variety is also reflected in model trains.
The most common axle lengths for N scale model trains vary from 0.538 inch (MTL) to beyond 0.576 inch (Arnold-Rapido). See this blog article for more details on N scale wheelsets.

Road Name History: No applicable company.

Brand/Importer Information: InterMountain was founded in 1985 by Fred Brummet. They got started in the model railroad business by producing O-Scale model kits. They got started in the N Scale business almost a decade later when in 1994 they introduced the 40-23 reefer car in kit form. Later, in 1998, they started producing RTR (Ready-to-Run) models. By the early 2000s, InterMountain phased out kit production in favor of the RTR models.

The InterMountain Railway company is located at 1224 Boston Ave in Longmont, CO. They are a manufacturer of HO, N and Z scale model trains. They have produced kits as well as RTR (Ready-To-Run) models. Their N Scale products include locomotives as well as rolling stock. Their rolling stock lineup includes Boxcars, Hoppers, Tank Cars, Reefers, Gondolas, Stock Cars and Flatcars.

Their locomotive releases have primarily been diesel units, with the one major exception being their series of AC-12 Cab Forward steam locos. Their diesel lineup includes F3's, F7's, F9's, SD40's, SD45's and FT units. They are known for quality and detail. They also release their rolling stock in larger varieties of road numbers than most of the other manufacturers.