Best of BrickNerd - Article originally published November 18, 2022.

LEGO has announced the 10,001-piece 10307 UCS Christmas Tree, and BrickNerd was lucky enough to be sent an early copy ahead of the holidays! What follows is an epic stream-of-consciousness build journal of the life-size Ultimate Collectors Set while lighting and decorating it for Christmas.

Brown Paper Packages

Whoa, this Christmas tree box is huge! It won’t fit in my normal build area, so I’ve commandeered the kitchen table.

Peekaboo! I see you! Getting this box out of the other box is a two-man operation.

What a beautiful Christmas tree! I am so excited to build it, and look! It already came with the first present to put under the tree.

Here' an obligatory photo of the backside of the box. Hmmm, I wonder what side you open since there is no obvious top...

I chose the right--which was wrong. No inspiring English here. I wonder if it might be on the lefthand side.

Bingo! Chose the left side to open this awesome set with a fun teaser quote in English.

The three boxes have side printing of a blueprint-style rendition of the Christmas tree. Looks like we'll be working from the bottom up!

I know this set is big, but it already has tripled in size just from the boxes within boxes! Boxception!

Each of these sub boxes is big enough to be its own set... And I have "I Saw Three Ships" stuck in my head.

My work is cut out for me because the first box feels the lightest.

Yep, smell that Billund air! Let's see what's inside!

Speaking of paper, there are no paper bags to be found in this set, but the instructions come in a new recyclable cardboard sleeve. I opened all three boxes to know what I was getting into. Behold 74 bags.

I love books! This set comes with three of them, but they are surprisingly thin for the set’s large size.

The first instruction book is shockingly thin! Also, why isn't the "T" capitalized here and on the box? That's a funny way to spell 'Tree".

Santa himself! I love sets that gave some facts and history along the way.

(Please ignore the giant fingerprint in the middle of the picture. LEGO’s black background for instructions is the worst for fingerprints.)

Spoiler alert on what the tree was originally conceived to look like.!

So many fun angles for photography.

The choice to make a UCS vintage Christmas tree was a bold one by LEGO, though I’m loving the decoration possibilities like these vintage aluminum trees.

Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree Base

What a colorful assortment!

Oh, now I know why they are thin. Beware the 4x. I've got a feeling we'll be doing that ALOT in this build.

It feels like we're building a modified MILS base for strength.

I'm glad I chose the kitchen table. This is getting big fast.

Cute mini-Christmas tree stands! I love little Easter eggs (umm... Christmas eggs!?) like this!

Stacking is your friend to save table space.

Oh boy, no more stacking. We're gonna need a bigger boat! The base is alerady bigger then the base of any existing LEGO set.

Anyone up for a board game? I all of a sudden want to play Monopoly.

For some reason, the internal colors are all red, white and blue. I’d have expected green instead of blue for the holidays, but I guess it the blue is there to be maybe be more inclusive of holidays like Hannukah too?

The new city road plates make for quick work filling out the base.

These parts bags are starting to feel more like a haul from a Pick a Brick wall at the LEGO Store...

As someone who likes to orient the injection points on LEGO pieces away from view, I noticed there are two different kinds of molds for the 1x2 tiles.

These parts piles are beautiful in their own way.

You may need a thimble. Putting all the 1x1 round plates in the middle of the four studs can start making your thumb numb.

80 pieces in one step! This almost feels cathartic.

Careful! If you put those 2x2 plates in the wrong orientation it is VERY difficult to get them out of the road plates without taking apart the whole base.

Don’t ask me how I know…

Building pyramids, I start humming "We Three Kings of Orient Are."

Not to mention that this WOULD have been a great time to introduce corner cheese slopes! I guess I’ll have to keep asking Santa for that in my letters.

The four little tree skirts are coming together!

By the time you get to the fourth iteration of the instructions step, you can almost build it from memory.

It’s time to make the micro-winter village that goes under the tree!

Look at all the places to put the micro lamps and trees. This winter village market is going to be adorable!

With two colors of green studs, the instructions are a bit hard to figure our which shade goes where, though I appreciate the variety.

A pile of lamp posts. Mr. Tumnus from Narnia would be so proud.

The mini market is taking shape!

I just noticed the accidental fun placement of the Christmas tree box in the distance.

Three shades of green now!

The gradient effect in these trees is nicely done. I'm glad they are not all one color.

Heads up this single page in the instruction book takes soooo long. That’s more than 300 pieces right there!

The trees are in place for our micro market. I wish it looked a bit more like winter, but I assume this is a location where it doesn't snow much. Not everywhere celebrates Christmas in the snow!

The first box is complete and it has been 3 hours building so far.

Silver Bells & Whistles

That's a lot of dark grey! I wish it were all pearl silver instead for that really authentic look.

At first glance, I thought I was accidentally building a Star Wars set!

The poor pieces look like they were tortured a bit, with gashes on the sides and odd stress marks around them.

Ouch. These clips are even worse! The gouges on the side are really distracting. I wonder what happened at the factory.

The gouges even have some plastic that is raised off the sides if the injection points. Yeah, I'll certainly be trying to hide these in the build when I can.

The base of the tree is starting! I expected a bit more Technic and was surprised we're doing this with mostly System parts.

The girders are all decorative and not for strenght. All the weight of the tree will be on the four corners of each base of the tree.

Building foliage takes time and a whole lot of greebly pieces!

So many 1x6 plates and clips!

These 1:1 drawings are nice to make sure you get all the angles right, but I think the instructions designers may have forgotten that printed instructions are bound and warped a bit.

Not to mention, how would you do this with digital instructions!?

These legs are taking forever! Beware the hidden 2x warnings. I've missed a few.

I just realized that I've only been making TWO legs for the base of the tree... now I need to do it all over again.

This calls for reinforcements!

The other two stems of the tree are finally done!

The base of the tree is fully assembled and is just like an artificial tree that breaks into sections.

I am a little worried that it feels a bit wobbly. There is some give to the base.

Yeah, those gashes in the clips are SO obvious and not able to be hid at all. At least they look like some kind of riveting up the sides of the base, but annoying nonetheless.

A view from above, the legs of the tree completed!

We’ve put on a holiday movie in the background to help pass the time. It’s a (horrible) classic called “Christmas in Paris” that we decided to watch for no reason whatsoever…

It is flex tube time!

I have this inexplicable urge to go fishing...

Yeah, those gashes on the clips are really annoying...

So much grey! At least the bags of parts are fun to look at and these are different than just bars and clips.

This siding is decorative only and hangs on for dear life with only a few studs.

Roller coaster track!

This step was super satisfying for my OCD brain for some reason.

It looks like a Christmas pipe organ!

Even the tree is smiling back.

You would think these arches would be load bearing, but no. They are for decoration purposes only.

The base branches of the tree are complete!

A little bit more fishing with a bigger rod.

Seven hours more, and the entire tree base section is complete!

Start this Christmas project well ahead of time—this one will take you a while. I’m eight hours of solid building and only have the base of the tree finished. Look how much room there will be to fit presents underneath! (But avert your eyes from all those injection molding gouges seen on the clip parts running up on both sides! )

All I Want for Christmas is You (To Help Me With These Steps)

Another bulk pick with 144 Apollo studs in one step!

I can't feel my fingertips anymore... but look! Some color!

The base curves up a bit with the pressure, but have no fear, things level out a bit later.

Why yes, I do arrange the pieces so the injection points are all aligned on the same side, thanks for noticing!

It's a giant snowflake! I love these hidden moments in this Christmas tree build.

Oh no. Look at all those clips with gouges!

Thankfully the gouges are all hidden on the inside of the build. Whew! Crisis averted.

So. Many. Clips.

At this point, I’m not phased one bit by placing bricks 100 at a time. How else are you going to make these lovely snowflakes that are hidden inside the Christmas tree!? (Though I am beginning to build up some calluses on my fingers…)

It almost looks like a fancy doily from above.

We're back to normal 1x1 round studs--making me wonder why we used the hollow ones before when we just covered them all up.

This siding on the tree is so intricate! It takes a lot of repetition to get the boughs to look just right.

So. Many. Bars.

I almost like the look of it upside-down more.

The last snowflake.

I keep thinking the base is going to be done by now, but I keep building. It has been 10.5 hours now.

These extra pieces made me think I forgot something somewhere, but try as I might, I could not find where they go.

In Box 3, Snow Is Glistening

The end is in sight! But look at all those bars and clips...

At this point, the entire kitchen table has surrendered to the UCS Christmas tree.

More branches with decorative girding, bars and clips!

I'm seeing double, but I know there is another 2x coming up soon.

Half of the main body branches are complete!

This section feels much more solid than the base though the branches are quite difficult to attach.

Yep, there is the dreaded 2x. Here we go again.

I need a boost to help my fingers and brain stay focused. Maybe doing this all in one sitting was a mistake...

Main section done.

I may be going batty, but I see little eyes and a mouth in these embellishments.

Central section is done.

13 hours of building straight.

I couldn't have done it without you, Diet Coke! I made a tower of you for size comparisons.

We are in the home stretch! The top of the tree has begun!

This looks like a magnified ice crystal.

More grey. I pity (or celebrate) anyone who drafts this set.

Another hidden snowflake.

Look at these cute mini-Christmas tree builds hidden inside the top of the big tree!

If you look carefully, can you find the hidden mini Christmas trees?

Gray hot dogs!

I can only imagine all the greebling possible with these gray dogs.

Makes me miss Gray's Papaya in NYC.

The top of the tree is about to be finished!

I see the tip of the tree!

More Pick a Brick amounts of 1x6 plates.

This looks like a simple photo of a Christmas star, but this step took over an hour to build.

Look at this beautiful star!

The frame for the top of the tree with a reinforced central core and two teensy ornaments hanging in the center.

The clips are back! I'm not sure anyone will see the gouges this far up the tree though.

I could die happy never touching another bar and clip again, I'm fairly sure.

I stand corrected. Here we go again.

I mean, It was probably built in the summer so wouldn't it be better to say it shrinks when it gets cold?

My favorite part of the build so far--look at these ornate, tall Christmas trees that make up the very top of the bigger tree! I want to make a diorama with just these.

So many places to hang ornaments!

The top two sections together at last.

Deck the Halls with Boughs of Gray

Not gonna lie... this bit looks like the top of an evil castle.

The tree topper is finished with even more greebling! There is even a Christmas flag to help celebrate.

The top of the tree nearly hits my ceiling.

I love this tree!

After a total of 19 hours of non-stop building, the UCS Christmas tree is finished! It nearly touches my ceiling from its position on the kitchen table. I relocated the tree to our stairwell—because that is the only area where it will fit! I suspect others might have issues with space to display this fine tree.

I look forward to reading The Brick Architect to see how this tree compares with the real thing and what the piece-per-gram ratio is… and The Brothers Brick to see how this compares to previous LEGO sets… and New Elementary to see if any of these gray pieces are new! (Though fair warning, both NE and TBB had some unintentional carnage with their trees… more on that in a moment!)

For a 10,001-piece set, there really aren't that many extra pieces.

All the instructions books together in one place.

Size difference between instruction books.

Looking at the piece counts, you can see how many bars and clippy bits there are!

704 of those clips and all with gouges in the side. Should I call LEGO customer service and ask for 704 replacement parts!?

That is a lot of 1x6 plates.

I’m not going to say anything about the number of them. :P

LEGO was even kind enough to send a mountain of ice and snow for my winter village! I love the way the light hits the snow just the right way and makes it glow. Paper bags might be recyclable, but plastic bags can be reused in MOCs too.

O Light Divine!

A Christmas tree is lovely, but it isn’t that magical without lights and decorations! I headed out to do some quick shopping to really make this new LEGO life-size Christmas Tree pop.

After another two hours of VERY DELICATELY wrapping the tree with battery-powered LED lights and wires, I can say that the tree all lit up feels magical. I got twinkling lights that add so much life to the tree. (It is so luminescent, I can only hope the cops don’t come to confiscate the tree for copyright infringement.)

The tree looks great all lit up. It almost feels romantic. I can just imagine getting a baguette for a snack, walking by the tree, looking up and holding hands with my spouse and just enjoying the magical sight. Here’s a whole gallery of photos that I couldn’t help but take pictures of.

(Carefully) Hang a Shining Star Upon the Highest Bough

No Christmas tree is complete without a star! The top of the tree had to be trimmed to make way for the topper. I had to build a central core for it to stand up and then used some gray poster putty to help it stay up. The tree seems a little weak the more weight I put on it, so I had to be very careful not to topple it.

I added a lovely tree skirt to hide the small end table the tree is sitting on. I also broke out some other holiday decorations since the house was looking a bit bland in comparison. (I also removed the mini winter village beneath the tree as I was putting all the lights and the wires kept getting snagged on the trees and lamps.)

This Christmas Bauble

Our Christmas tree needs a present underneath it and some decorations! Luckily LEGO came in clutch and is giving away this awesome little gift with a purchase of a UCS Christmas Tree. It is a set of a cute, awkwardly shaped apartment with a mini version of the tree inside it. And look! It takes up about as much room in this apartment as it does in ours. How life-like.

After building 10,000 pieces, 228 seems like a walk in the park.

Only a few bags in this set.

It looks likes Santa on holiday, ready for a Yule Ball!

This floor is MILS too.

Keep an eye out for the Mario Easter egg with his hidden cap!

So many stickers! Getting these all lined up was about as nerve wracking as moving the tree.

Be careful putting a dark gray LEGO tree by the window. UV can discolor it!

The desk is cute.

He sees you when your sleeping. He knows when you're awake!

The gift is lovely when it is all assembled, even with the awkward proportions. It evokes the same feel as the Charles Dickens GWP from last holiday season.

The scene is a bit too big to be a decoration on our Christmas tree, so I took the best parts and put them into a LEGO holiday bauble! It is a tree-ception!

The bauble is a little heavy, so be careful where you place it on the tree. You can see an up-close look at how I wrapped the lights too. I tried to do it in a grid pattern to make sure every angle was covered.

It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas

The UCS Christmas Tree was really missing some color—especially some holiday colors like red and green. So I broke out the ornaments and went to town. Be careful of how you place them because not every girder branch is connected to the core of the tree. I used some very lightweight ornaments and bendable wire hangers to get every ornament properly positioned.

And our mascot Nerdly even wanted to join the fun and become a decoration! (Nerdly is excited to go on an adventure in our Fantasy contest for Nerdvemeber going on right now for some cool prizes.)

With the lights off in the room, the lit tree absolutely shines and fills our entire apartment with Christmas cheer. I made some hot chocolate and just sat and looked at the tree while listening to “O Christmas Tree.” (Honestly, I would rather not be looking at our stairs the whole time, but this set is so big there is simply nowhere else to put it! Where am I going to put the train that goes around the base!?)

Altogether, it took me 24 hours non-stop to build and decorate the LEGO UCS Christmas Tree. With so much repetition building the base and branches, I got a bit bleary-eyed. I suspect many people will spread out the build over a week or two to enjoy the set (and save their fingers).

I found the set to be vertically strong, amazingly holding up all the weight, but a little wobbly horizontally. I suspect that we will see a fair few pictures of collapsed Christmas trees in the coming weeks (i.e. the “carnage” I mentioned that our RLFM colleagues NE and TBB have experienced).

While I was wrapping the tree in lights, the side arches made with roller coaster track also popped off a number of times to the point where I think the wires from the lights are literally holding the sections from falling off. If you don’t intend to ever move or light your LEGO Christmas tree, this shouldn’t be that much of a problem for you.

Aesthetically, the set is stunning, if not a little overly gray—but that is what you get when you try to create a set of an aluminum Christmas Tree. I expected more Technic bracing and instead got a set that stands up for itself using some sort of magic engineering. I am curious how it will fare over time bearing all the weight on just a few legs and clips.

Oh, and the CLIPS. I really hope LEGO fixes the issue with the 704 horizontal clips with the gouges (sprue marks) and rough edges that you can see up and down the sides of the tree. (I’ve noticed these same clips causing issues in the 10290 Pickup Truck looking like bullet holes in the side of the vehicle. Speaking of which, that truck would look great as a toy under the tree!)

So is this LEGO Christmas Tree right for you? Is it a good value? That all depends on if you have space for it, if you have the patience to build it, the funds to afford it, and a love of towering trees. I personally think it was a fun set to build and it will be the centerpiece of our holiday decorations for the next three months. After that, it will probably go back in the box for the rest of the year. Who wants a Christmas Tree on display year-round?

But I most look forward to seeing the creativity from the LEGO community surrounding this set. Surely someone will use it as inspiration to build a spaceship. Until then, From all of us at BrickNerd, we wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

DISCLAIMER: These sets were provided to BrickNerd by LEGO. Any opinions expressed in this article are those of the author.

If you would like your own set, the LEGO 10307 UCS Christmas Tree will be available from stores and online beginning November 25th for $629.99 in the US, $799.99 in Canada, £554.99 in the United Kingdom, and $999.99 in Australia.

How will you customize your LEGO Christmas Tree? Let us know in the comments!

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