In this manuscript, we show that the combined use of precise synthesis, intrinsic viscosity measurements, light scattering, and parameterized computer simulations can provide insight into the conformational properties of dilute bottlebrush polymers. We use a set of model bottlebrushes to show that intrinsic viscosity is an accessible and sensitive property that can reflect architectural differences in e.g. backbone length and branch length. Intrinsic viscosity also suggests how geometry changes upon increasing the backbone length for a given branch length, with changes from a star-like structure, to an extended rod, and finally to a coil-like chain.