Splash - Above Ground Pool Step Entry System with Gate NE138

Overall, we are pleased with the whole system.

Instructions
I agree with others that have said that the written instructions were a little confusing. You can buy the entire system as we did, or you can buy just the parts you need in different combinations. Because of this, you have different instructions for the different parts and you have to jump around a bit in the instructions. This is really not a big deal because it is pretty easy to see how it goes together just by looking at the pictures.

Assembly
The whole thing went together very easily. You assemble the 2 sides and the bridge, put one side in the pool, then slide the bridge over the top of the inside handrails. Pop in the top part of the handrails then put in the screws to hold all that together.
The screws went in easily with no need to pre-drill holes. I would advise that you use a regular screwdriver to do the final tightening of the screws so that you don't strip them out. These are plastic parts, so use a drill gun to get them started but hand-tighten them carefully.
When you put one side of the steps in the pool, they still want to float even after filling up with water. I did not want to fill the steps with sand because I don't think I would ever be able to get them out of the pool again. My plan was to weigh them down by attaching something to them like a concrete block. However, when I opened the box, I found a flier advertising the Easy Step Weight System specifically for these steps. They are sold by a different company, Charlie's Wholesale, for around $60. https://charlieswholesale.com/ They are basically 2 narrow plastic containers that you fill with 50 pounds of sand and hang on the sides of the steps with the included clips. To take them off, you just lift them off of the clips. Very nice setup and look like they came with the steps. Well worth the money.
The steps came with 4 runners that are to be zip-tied to the bottom and go between the steps and the ground or pool bottom. I cannot imagine what they are for. Because they are held on with zip-ties, all they do is make the steps less sturdy and unnecessarily raise the height by 2 inches. I did not use them.

Sturdiness
Once I had the system fully assembled, it was pretty sturdy, considering that the people using it weight 250 lbs. At that weight, you do feel a little give in the steps and the whole thing would move a bit while going up and down. These are not steps that a large adult is going to be able to jump around on. I have found that if you go gently with them, they are fine. For kids, I imagine it is not a problem at all.
Once I had the steps in place, I used the zip-ties to secure them to the top rail of the pool and this made a big improvement. Now, there is almost no movement at all when going up and down the steps.

Appearance
I would have preferred a beige or tan color instead of white but overall, they look good. We currently have a 14' pool that is 38" high, so the steps look kinda large. When we replace this pool with a larger and taller one, I think they will not stand out so much.

Conclusion
We are happy with the purchase and would recommend it to anyone that is tired of climbing up and down the flimsy ladders that come with the smaller above-ground pools. While the steps could be a little more sturdy, I am still giving them 5 stars. Hopefully they will hold up for several years.