I built my Tamiyas straight out of the box. The Sherman was built in a few days. It was an Christmas gift for my son - how do you tell him to wait a few weeks while Dad "researches" his tank? Once the Sherman was done, I needed the Tiger in a hurry to battle with the Sherman, and it also went together in a few days. While it might be "easier" to do all your research and build you tank the way want the first time, it is not that difficult to do it after the fact. Below are some shots of my "factory fresh" tanks from 2005. Second are shots of my Sherman in 2007.