We're really happy with this purchase.  It took about an hour for two adults to arrange the branches for the first time, which seems reasonable.  It really does look full once it's truly arranged well.  The gloves that came with it were a big help and I would recommend wearing a long sleeve shirt to save your arms from scratches - but that's true of any artificial tree, so it's certainly not a design flaw.  We've included a photo of the undecorated tree so you can see the shape and fullness without the distraction of ornaments.  I read all of the other reviews and it really does sound like poor reviews have more to do with user error than the construction of the tree.  We're quite pleased with it.